While Thomas Pidcock and Nino Schurter fought a constant battle at the front, Léandre Bouchard struggled to maintain his place among the top 60 of the elite men’s cross-country race presented on Saturday at the world championships in Glasgow.
The Canadian runner-up struggled to find his rhythm on the Glentress Mountain Bike Center track. Sitting in 53rd place after the first two laps, the veteran cyclist was never able to move up the standings thereafter. He slipped ten rungs, before recording his best time on the eighth and final loop of the day to finish 60th (1h 28 min 48 s).
Gunnar Holmgren (42nd), Peter Disera (51st) and Sean Fincham (54th) were the other Canadians in contention during this race marked by a spectacular duel between the British Thomas Pidcock, reigning Olympic champion, and the Swiss Nino Schurter, ten times individual world champion.
In the end, it was ardor and youth that prevailed in this clash of generations, as Pidcock, 24, was the first to complete the race to wear the rainbow jersey. His many attacks on lap five saw him take control and he never looked back, en route to a triumph in 1:22:9.
Not far behind, Nino Schurter maintained the pace of his rival until the seventh lap, then succumbed to the rise of New Zealander Samuel Gaze, second at the finish where he fell 19 seconds behind Pidcock. Schurter (34 seconds) was thus decorated with bronze.
It should be noted that the Dutchman Mathieu Van der Poel, world champion on the road and world title holder in cyclo-cross, could not complete the race. Victim of a fall in a descent on the first lap, he was forced to retire.
Among the women, it was once again the French Pauline Ferrand-Prévot who won, getting her hands on the fifth title of her career in this event. The only Quebecer in action for the occasion, Laurie Arseneault had to retire in the first minutes of the race.
For their part, Marie-Fay St-Onge (37th), Ophélie Grandmont (38th) and Zorak Paillé (66th) took part in the under-23 events, while their compatriots Jacob Roy (24th), Mika Comaniuk ( 32nd), Anabelle Drouin (38th) and Maxime St-Onge (52nd) cycled among the juniors.
For his part, Tarek Dahab took advantage of the day on Saturday to complete the first World Championships of his career with a 16th place in the C2 category road race, a result that aligns perfectly with his expectations.
“My trainer Sébastien [Travers] explained to me well how the race would go and I had no surprises. It was a very strong competition today (Saturday) and I’m happy with the effort,” Dahab said after the 62.4 kilometer race.
In the end, the athlete from Beloeil finished just over 11 minutes behind the winner, Frenchman Alexandre Leaute (1:34:38). Australian Darren Hicks (2 seconds) and Belgian Ewoud Vromant (45 seconds) completed the top three.
“The conditions were pretty tough and it’s been a good experience for me overall,” he continued. The favorites took a quick lead and we were never able to catch them, but I was able to take several stints in my group. I knew what to expect and it turned out pretty well. »
Fourth in the time trial on the track on Monday and 18th on the road on Thursday, Dahab believes he can say mission accomplished for this first experience at worlds. As soon as he returns home, operations on both wrists and one thumb await him, after which he will be able to resume training at full speed for the next season.
“I will have quite a long rest period, but the good news is that I will still be able to pedal!” launched the 50-year-old cyclist by way of conclusion.
The World Championships of Cycling Sports will conclude on Sunday.
