Frei, Koretzky, Böhm and Lillo also win the final of the Short Track World Cup
The U23 riders open the four-day UCI World Cup in Mont-Sainte-Anne with exciting races in the short track. Kira Böhm had already won the women's U23 short track series last weekend with a commanding victory in Mt. Van Hoevenberg - Lake Placid (USA), but the young German rider was not resting on her laurels in her last short track race before moving up to the elite.
Being in the lead from the start, Böhm remained in the leading group throughout, riding in a controlled and confident manner before pulling away on the final lap to win her fourth Short Track World Cup of the 2024 season.
The 22-year-old has been on the short track podium all season. Her 201-point lead over Emilly Johnston (Trek Future Racing) underlines her dominance in this discipline.
Böhm's closest rival on the day was once again Isabella Holmgren. The U23 short track world champion fought her way up from 18th place after the first lap, but the 19-year-old no longer had enough reserves to challenge Böhm for victory in front of her home crowd. Next year, however, she will certainly be in contention for overall victory. Switzerland's Lea Huber (Trek Future Racing) completed the podium in third place.
Kira Böhm also wins the World Cup final in short track.
Lillo dominates again, Amos wins overall
After a disappointing home race by his standards, Riley Amos (Trek Factory Racing - Pirelli) was expected to bounce back with a strong performance in Mont-Sainte-Anne. It is his last race in the rainbow jersey as U23 Short Track World Champion before moving up to the elite class.
The American went into the final short track race with an 80-point lead over compatriot Bjorn Riley (Trek Future Racing), but with Riley back in the mix after taking time out at Mt Van Hoevenberg - Lake Placid, Amos needed to beat his rival to secure the overall. The start did not go particularly well for the world champion, who was in tenth place at the halfway point of the race, four seconds behind Luke Moir (Cube Factory Racing), who had been in the lead until then. Amos did launch an attack and took the lead at the start of the seventh lap, but it was the last time we would see him at the front of the race.
Instead, Dario Lillo took the reins, and the Swiss rider showed that his performance last weekend was no fluke. The 22-year-old took the lead at the start of the final lap, fended off an attack from Riley and sprinted across the line to his second consecutive U23 short track win. Bjorn Riley finished second, Moir third and Amos seventh, eleven seconds behind. But it was enough for Amos to win the overall standings, which he took by 40 points.
Dario Lillo uses his excellent late-season form for another short-track victory.
Free tactically clever to victory
The last short track race of the elite women's season starts quickly and a larger leading group soon forms, including Evie Richards, Alessandra Keller and Loana Lecomte (FRA). However, not much happens. There were occasional lead changes, but they didn't lead to any changes. The pace also drops three laps before the end, and gradually more riders are closing the gap again. The leading riders constantly feel each other out with slight increases in pace, but never take things seriously. Nevertheless, the pace was high enough that the riders behind were unable to push forward.
On the first climb of the final lap, Lecomte stepped on the gas, causing the leading group to split. Only Sina Frei and Evie Richards were able to keep up the pace. Frei, who has held back so far, now takes the lead before the last forest passage. The Swiss racer immediately takes the momentum she has gained and hammers up the last ramp to the finish, where she rides the decisive meters to her second World Cup victory. "The madness! I can hardly believe that I can once again ride a race the way you want to," said a delighted Frei.
Behind the Swiss, Loana Lecomte and Evie Richards (GBR) rode to second and third place. Austria's Laura Stigger takes sixth place, while Alessandra Keller is not only the overall winner of the Short Track World Cup, she also secures her victory in the overall World Cup with eighth place.
Frei wins second Short Track World Cup in a row.
World champion finish
The men's race also starts and remains very fast. And not much happens here either. Only a slight slip by Filippo Colombo (SUI) at the end of the seventh lap led to a first leading group with Luca Schwarzbauer (GER) as pacemaker. Despite his illustrious company, including world champion Victor Koretzky (FRA) and Chris Blevins (USA), the chasing pack closes the gap again. But the finale already seems to be underway and the attacks intensify, with another group splintering off. Schwarzbauer is still riding at the front, but Alan Hatherly and Lars Forster (SUI) are also fighting in the slipstream. The last decisive acceleration brings Koretzky, and only Mathis Azzaro is able to parry him, while Hatherly already has a small gap. Schwarzbauer, who has probably worked too hard, leaves a gap open.
The final sprint sees Koretzky ride from the front, leaving his compatriot no chance. "It was super fast right from the start, and that doesn't really suit me. Nonetheless, it went great, even though I was pushed hard right to the end. All the better that it worked out and that I was able to clinch overall victory," said short track world champion Victor Koretzky.
South African Alan Hatherly rode to third place, with Lars Forster just behind him in fourth place ahead of Luca Schwarzbauer. Marcel Guerrini (SUI) takes sixth place, Max Brandl is the second German to ride to tenth place.
Note: This content has been automatically translated from German. Please report any incorrect translations.