"The facility is great. I will actually come here more often to train," enthuses Mathias Flückiger at the opening of the Swiss Bike Park in Oberried. Over the past two weeks, the World Cup winner from Albstadt has been here almost every day to prepare for the qualifying race for the "Red Bull UCI Pump Track World Championships".

However, Flückiger did not make it to the final, which did not dampen his enthusiasm. In front of the illustrious guests, including former Federal Councillor Johann Schneider Ammann, President of the Government Christoph Ammann and many more, Flückiger paid tribute to the pump track pros who were riding for the medals before the official opening ceremony.

The Swiss Bike Park should also attract many professionals after the Pumptrack World Championships, as it offers other specific training opportunities such as an open velodrome, a dirt jump facility with and without airbags, cross-country test tracks and more.
But not only professionals: whether as an introduction to cycling, to improve riding safety and technique, for courses or simply for fun, amateur athletes and beginners, regardless of age, are also named as an important target group for the Swiss Bike Park.

The facility can now be used by the public. In November, the Swiss Bike Park is open daily from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. In December and January, it is open until 16:30, but closed on Sundays.
Some stations, such as the jumping facility, are closed when wet. The latter is only accessible by prior arrangement and under supervision.

Well-attended evening program

In addition to Thömus' traditional ramp sale, the opening week also included an attractive series of lectures. The political topics such as "Decommissioning the Mühleberg nuclear power plant" and "Climate policy evening" may sound a little dry, but the presentations attracted large numbers of visitors and there was never a dull moment. Above all, they showed that these hot topics are on people's minds.

It was therefore all the less surprising that the sporting part with Fabian Cancellara almost brought the marquee to bursting point. The presentation of the new "Lightrider" cross-country bike, which is used by the "Thömus RN Swiss Bike Team" and others, was also attended by a large and interested audience.

The next expansion stages

However, the Swiss Bike Park is not quite finished. The trail construction companies Velosolutions and Flying Metal Crew managed to complete the courses in a record-breaking construction time of just under four months. However, the main building is still missing, which would have been simply impossible in such a short time.

The main building and the digitalization will therefore follow in the second and third expansion stages - in parallel, as initiator Thomas Binggeli reveals: "The second expansion stage concerns the main building, which houses the checkrooms, showers, seminar rooms, training center and also the rental department. The third stage is being worked on practically in parallel. This includes digitization, for a wide variety of measurements or video analyses on the test tracks."

The aim is to implement both by 2021. However, Binggeli goes on to explain that the project still has a long way to go financially. The costs for the entire project amount to CHF 15 million. A good five million has already been spent on the main part, the various routes and jump facilities.

"We have already secured over two million of the other ten million needed, and the other buildings will be tackled at around five or six million francs.

www.swissbikepark.ch/pumptrack-wm

Zula and Ridenour first world champions - medals for the Swiss

American duo Tommy Zula and Payton Ridenour triumph at the first Red Bull UCI Pump Track World Championships in the Swiss Bike Park. Nadine Aeberhard and Tristan Borel took silver for Switzerland. Top seed Christa von Niederhäusern wins bronze, while David Graf misses out on a place in the round of 16.

In 2018, the Swiss duo of David Graf and Christa von Niederhäusern won the first Pump Track World Championships in Arkansas, USA, and returned to Bern to defend their titles on home soil. Only this time it will be the official UCI World Championship titles. This means that for the first time, the coveted rainbow jerseys will be awarded in pump track racing.
And as befits this discipline, participants are free to choose whether they want to compete on BMX or mountain bikes.

After some thrilling heats in the women's race, it comes to the semi-finals where it turns out There will be a new world champion. Christa von Niederhäusern has to pump her way into the small final for the last medal. And the 21-year-old does so successfully, beating 17-year-old Czech Michaela Hajkova.

The dream of Swiss gold is still intact, however, as Nadine Aeberhard has ridden into the grand final together with American Payton Ridenour. However, the 17-year-old Ridenour is faster than the Swiss rider and thus becomes the first official UCI Pump Track World Champion. But Aeberhard is hardly disappointed: "It's a mega good feeling to finish with a result like this in front of a home crowd!"

Surprise in the men's race

The 3,500 spectators can also hope for a Swiss medal in the men's event. However, it is not the BMX specialist David Graf, but the junior rider Tristan Borel - also from the BMX camp.
The second finalist is Tommy Zula (USA), so it will be a mixed battle for gold: Borel on the BMX, Zula on the mountain bike.

It has always been claimed that BMX riders have an advantage on the pump track. Given the number of BMX riders in the field, this seems plausible. However, Velosolutions founder Claudio Caluori emphasized that their pump tracks are built in such a way that there is a level playing field.

In the end, it was the American who took the gold medal on his 26-inch bike, relegating Borel to silver. "I'm absolutely speechless. I'm 27, I feel old and my legs are burning," says Zula with a laugh.
Third place went to Eddy Clerté from France, another BMXer.

www.redbullpumptrackworldchampionship.com