Six-time downhill world champion Rachel Atherton had achieved everything and had actually been out of racing since she ruptured her Achilles tendon while training in Les Gets in 2019. After recovering from the injury, the pandemic and the effective cancellation of the 2020 season and the birth of her daughter Arna in August 2021, it looked like Rachel was done with racing for more than three years. But in July 2022, she returned to the World Cup at the last minute for a single race, which also took place in Lenzerheide, one of Rachel's favorite courses. At the time, she said: "I'm still a long way from being fully fit again, but I wanted to compete and show that you can have a baby and still do sport. I wanted to see if it was still fun at all and if it was possible with a baby." With sixth place on the day, Rachel was only just off the podium.

Almost a year later, she returns to Lenzerheide, but struggles to build up her confidence ahead of the race: "It's a completely different thing to ride a World Cup than at home in the Dyfi Bike Park, where I know the lines inside out." But second place in qualifying is already a great success for Atherton. Only Camille Balanche can beat Rachel's time. It's no different in the semi-finals.

However, the 35-year-old has caught the scent. She delivers a very calm but fast ride and takes the lead from Germany's Nina Hoffmann. Only last year's overall World Cup winner and big favorite in Lenzerheide, Camille Balanche, is still on the course. Despite a very good ride, the Swiss skier's clock stops half a second later and Rachel Atherton wins a World Cup race for the 40th time. "I can't believe it, before the race I really had no idea whether I would even qualify, because the new format is tough and I'm exhausted," said a delighted Atherton.

Balanche said of her race day: "I had three consistently good runs. That was really great. Of course I would have preferred to win, but Rachel was faster today. I did what I could and three minutes and eight seconds is a time I'm happy with. I'm proud of that. I was second last year, so that's a bit of a shock. But to be on the podium is great."

Results

Riding to win

In the men's race, New Zealander Lachlan Stevens-McNab (THE UNION - FORGED BY STEEL CITY MEDIA) keeps the hot seat warm for a long time during the semi-final. Reigning world champion Loïc Bruni (SPECIALIZED GRAVITY) then took the first points, crossing the finish line 0.161 seconds ahead of Austria's Andreas Kolb (CONTINENTAL ATHERTON). Loris Vergier (TREK FACTORY RACING GRAVITY) completed the podium in third place. Reigning World Cup winner Amaury Pierron (COMMENCAL-MUC OFF BY RIDING ADDICTION) is not at the start after a crash the day before.

In the final, Jordan Williams (SPECIALIZED GRAVITY) takes the first downhill victory of the year ahead of Frenchman Loris Vergier and current UCI World Champion Loïc Bruni. It is remarkable that this is the young Brit's first race in the elite category and that he announced around a week beforehand that he would be competing to win. When it actually worked out, Williams was a little overwhelmed: "This is simply amazing. Lenzerheide is not one of my favorite courses, so I just rode as well as I could. I don't know where I got the speed from. I'm sure the fast riders in the juniors helped me before I got to the elite. I didn't focus on winning or riding hard, I just tried to ride my best race and see where I ended up."

Williams teammate Loïc Bruni added: "It's a very good weekend for us. It was a good test for the new format with two races. It's a pretty easy track that works well physically. I am very happy with the result. I was in the fight for the win all weekend and that's really cool. It's been a productive winter, I think. We will now work on the details and eliminate some of the mistakes I made today. Thank you Lenzerheide for the great crowd and the great weather. We had a great atmosphere in the team. We finished first, third and fifth, so there's nothing to complain about."

Results