Last Sunday (13), in Scotland, Tom Pidcock won another title in his career, winning the elite men’s race of the UCI Mountain Bike World Championship. Even facing some mechanical problems in the match, the athlete achieved an excellent performance taking him to the podium.
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âMy gears weren’t working on the last lap. They were jumping on all the climbs and Gaze was right behind. I thought it could all go to waste at any moment. I looked at my bike now and it’s loose so I must have hit it somewhere”, explained Tom Pidcock about the adrenaline moments in the middle of the match.
The Briton said that, despite having some difficulties, he managed to reverse his position and gained strength a little later in the game. “That is good. I mean, it’s a huge relief. It’s been a long week building this. In front of my fans it’s very special. Going down the final stretch, I was finally able to take it all in. Before that, the last few laps were very stressful. I just kept my focus enjoying the crowd,â he stated.
Mathieu van der Poel also participated in the mountain bike competition, however, the cyclist left the match after three minutes of its start, having fallen on a loose gravel descent on the Glentress Forest course, which took place last Saturday (12) , also in Scotland.
When asked about the incident by the website Het Nieuwsblad, the athlete stated that he was feeling embarrassed by the event: âI am quite upset with myself. A stupid mistake on one of the easier parts of the course. It was on the same side as my fall in the road race and the blow hurt a lot, but it’s not too bad. The physique and damage are manageable, continuing was not an optionâ.
Before Saturday’s competition (12th) was held, the UCI had communicated that a rule created for World Cup events, which involved mountain biking and cyclocross, had been changed. The measure generated criticism from the competitors, in which it interfered with the athletes’ positions before each match.
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