Third place in the Long distance race in Italy today was good enough to secure the overall top placing for the Czech athlete Krystof Bogar. Race winners were Kaarina Nurminen, Finland and for the second day running, Fabiano Bettega on home ground. Both wins were by big margins.
Bettega was fastest throughout, taking 9 minutes over 2 hours on the gruelling course of 21.3 km with 1035 m climb. Vojtech Ludvik, closest challenger to Bogar for the overall title, finished second at the end, having been 11th55分钟之后。他是8.14获胜time.
Bogar held second-fastest time for much of the race, but dropped to third and finished 9.22 down. He has had 3 victories and 2 second places in the World Cup and is current World Champion in both Sprint and Middle. Now almost 30, he has consistently enjoyed top placings in MTBO since 2013, when he first came to the fore as World Champion in Long Distance in Estonia.
Kaarina Nurminen, 21 has been the strongest challenger to Nikoline Splittorff this year, and she marked her progress with a win by 4.51 over the Danish rider Camilla Søgaard. Nurminen was fourth at the first radio, moved up to second at half-way and was strongest over the later parts of the 18.7 km / 650 m course. Splittorff, who dropped 5 minutes in the second half of the course, finished third, 5.51 down. A third Dane, Cæcilie Christoffersen, finished fifth.
Rising star Kaarina Nurminen FIN in action
U-23 World Champions in Long Distance following this race are Kaarina Nurminen, Finland and Armel Berthaud, France. Berthaud finished fifth in today’s race. Winners of the U-23 World Cup, taken over the whole season, are both from Finland: Nurminen (with maximum points) and Tomi Nykanen, U-23 champion yesterday but disqualified today.
Heavy rain drenched the competitors, who found many of the small paths difficult to follow and very muddy. Mistakes were common, therefore, and most riders lost time at various points on the courses.
Tomorrow is the climax of the Team World Cup, a Mixed Relay for teams of three including at least one woman. At present, Finland leads Czechia by 5 points, with Switzerland a further 3 points down. The mass start is at 10.00 local time – follow it live with TV pictures, tracking and results service on IOF LIVE!
Leading results, Long Distance
Women
- Kaarina Nurminen FIN 2:00:30
- Camilla Søgaard DEN 2:05:21
- Nikoline Splittorff DEN 2:06:21
- Gabriele Andrasiuniene LTU 2:07:50
- Cæcilie Christoffersen DEN 2:13:14
- Valerie Kamererova CZE 2:14:04
Men
- Fabiano Bettega ITA 2:09:34
- Vojtech Ludvik CZE 2:17:48
- Krystof Bogar CZE 2:18:56
- Jeremi Pourré FRA 2:21:00
- Armel Berthaud FRA 2:21:17
- Andreas Waldmann AUT 2:22:00
Leading World Cup Final Standings
Women
- Nikoline Splittorff DEN 580 points
- Kaarina Nurminen FIN 525
- Gabriele Andrasiuniene LTU 341
Men
- Krystof Bogar CZE 570
- Vojtech Ludvik CZE 540
- Fabiano Bettega ITA 378