Success in Nove Mesto: Sara Cortinovis on the Podium
The third round of the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup took place in the legendary venue of Nové Město na Moravě in the Czech Republic, where Sara Cortinovis finished on the podium and 3 Top 10 finishes for the Elite Women.
Let’s unfold this:
Strong Performances in the XCC
Saturday’s Short Track (XCC) race saw a strong performance from Nicole Koller, who remained in the lead group throughout and secured a front-row start for Sunday’s XCO with P6. Caroline Bohe also showed solid form with her best XCC result in a long time, finishing 19th on a course that hasn’t historically been her favorite. Anne Terpstra had great legs but was unlucky: two crashes in front of her disrupted her rhythm and cost her a top starting position. Sara Cortinovis finished in position 15 and Finja Lipp crossed the finish line as 26th. She was a little frustrated by it, but is thankful to be back racing. Still, Sunday’s XCO provided another opportunity.
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Sara Shines – First World Cup Podium in Three Years
Finja was racing with realistic expectations after battling pneumonia between Brazil and Nové Město. Her focus was on testing her body under race conditions – she finished in a respectable P23.
Meanwhile, Sara Cortinovis came into the weekend in high spirits – and with good reason. After a less-than-ideal start, she found her rhythm, matched the pace of the leaders for several laps, and once the front group split, she made her move. Sara passed two riders to secure P3, earning her first World Cup podium since 2022. A huge congratulations to our Italian rider for this impressive comeback!
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Three Riders in the Top 10 on Sunday
In the XCO race, Caroline Bohe was moving around P15 before a mechanical issue set her back. She managed to fight her way back to P24 – a strong effort given the circumstances. Anne and Nicole had very different races initially, but by the second-last lap, they found themselves riding together in a small group that included Loana Lecomte. In a close sprint to the line, it was Nicole in P8, Loana, and Anne finishing in P10. Nicole remains second overall in the World Cup standings, while Anne took a lot of positives from the race, especially after the adjustments made following the Brazil rounds.
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Next Stop: Leogang
After a well-earned short break, the team regroups for Round 4 of the World Cup in Leogang, Austria. Let’s keep the momentum going!