On the fast course in Snowshoe, a top trio emerges in the third of seven laps. After Vlad Dascalu crashes on the first lap and is left far behind, Filippo Colombo also has a chance of overall victory. Dascalu needs a sixth place to defend his lead if Colombo wins.
There are repeated attacks at the front, but the route offers few opportunities to make the difference. "I tried to save energy as much as possible," explains Colombo, "but it was a very fast race."

The trio go into the final lap together, while Dascalu has now reached the group up to fourth place. But that doesn't interest Colombo at the moment, because he's in it for the win, one way or another.
Halfway through the lap, Colombo attacks, moves into first position and pulls away. A gap opens up, albeit only three seconds wide. Jofre Cullell and Max Brandl remain within striking distance and Colombo has to give it his all to secure his third World Cup victory in the U23 class.
"It's great to finish the U23 season with a World Cup win, I'm happy," explains Colombo.

Fabio Püntener is surprisingly second best Swiss. He didn't get off to a good start, was "wedged in" and initially only finished in 30th place. "I didn't want to ride too fast towards the front so as not to overdo it. But it went faster than I thought," says Püntener. "After three laps, I didn't know if I could pull it off, but it worked out."

In the final phase, he had a group in front of him and caught up with them. A competitor attacks, but together with another rival he catches him again. He loses the sprint for ninth place to the Italian Gabriele de Cosmo, but Püntener is not bothered by this. "It's a shame that the season is over, things were going better and better. I'm very satisfied," he sums up.

Koller finishes in eighth place

Britain's Evie Richards celebrates her first win of the season in the U23 race at the World Cup final in Snowshoe, USA, 1:06 minutes ahead of Austria's Laura Stigger and 1:35 minutes ahead of France's Loana Lecomte. The only Swiss rider, Nicole Koller, finished eighth (+2:57).

When a five-strong leading group forms on the first lap, Koller is not in it.
Evie Richards was able to break away from this leading quintet at the end of the second lap and ride solo to her second U23 victory after Albstadt 2017. Laura Stigger immediately positions herself in second place and fends off the attack from France's Loana Lecomte.

Nicole Koller fights in a group from seventh place. The US American Haley Batten comes towards her from the front, but the Italians Giorgia Marchet and Kelsey Urban (USA) are unable to hold Koller off.
"It just wasn't possible today. The season is too long after I also rode the cross season," explained Koller, who finished her last U23 World Cup season in sixth place.
The German Ronja Eibl, weakened by illness, is only eleventh on this day (+3:48), but has already secured the overall victory.

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