"It will be a different race, for sure." Nino Schurter, who narrowly lost out to Olympic champion Jaroslav Kulhavy in Nove Mesto after a duel by hook or by crook, is not assuming that there will automatically be a duel with the Olympic champion from the Czech Republic on May 31 in the Bullentäle in Albstadt. Although the duo put over a minute between themselves and the competition. "I don't know how Jaroslav will cope with Albstadt, it's not my favorite course either. In any case, we have to keep an eye on Absalon and Florian Vogel," says Schurter with a view to the second World Cup race.

Julien Absalon, last year's winner in Albstadt, repeated in Nove Mesto what he has already said several times: "Albstadt is the course that suits me best. I'm happy about my third place. It shows that my form is already quite good despite the break in the spring due to the allergy. I hope that it will be even better next Sunday. I'm looking forward to it." If he could repeat his success from last year, it would be the world champion's 30th World Cup victory. Florian Vogel, who may not have been at one hundred percent in Nove Mesto due to a slight cold, could still add one or two percentage points in the Bullentäle. "For now, I'm happy to be back on the World Cup podium after three years. Let's see what we can do in Albstadt," says the Swiss athlete.The "big three" in the top three positions and the spring series winner in fourth place is certainly no surprise. Manuel Fumic actually wanted to be among the front runners. But the Cannondale pro allowed himself too many mistakes. "It's a shame, but there's nothing I can do about it. My form is very good, I'm quite sure of that. I'm looking ahead and I'm really looking forward to the home World Cup. The spectators will give me an extra boost," says the man from Kirchheim. Freiburg's Moritz Milatz had an even worse time of it, as he broke his chain right at the start and had no chance of a decent result. He will be looking for revenge in Albstadt.Announcement from Dahle-Flesjaa
Norway's Gunn-Rita Dahle-Flesjaa is also seeking revenge. The showdown between her and Jolanda Neff was even closer than the men's race. A single second decided the tingling duel between the generations in favor of the Swiss rider. A single second separated the Norwegian from her 29th World Cup victory, which would have tied her with Absalon and made her the sole record holder in the women's race. The 42-year-old has her sights firmly set on making up for this in Albstadt. "I can't be disappointed, but I'm a bad loser. I won't make a mistake until Sunday. Next week is pay-back time," announced Dahle-Flesjaa in Nove Mesto. She and Jolanda Neff fought "for every metre", "but fairly at all times", she emphasized. Neff is determined to defend the white jersey. If only to be able to start the third World Cup race with it. "It would be great if I could also wear it in Lenzerheide," says the defending World Cup champion in Nove Mesto.

Road and cross world champion Pauline Ferrand Prevot, last year's superior winner in both Nove Mesto and Bullentäle, complained of pain in her leg. "A bit like sciatica. Sometimes it was good, sometimes not," explains the Frenchwoman. Without this problem, she could well be closing in on her two rivals. World champion Catharine Pendrel is also a force to be reckoned with. And Denmark's Annika Langvad, who had a few crashes in Nove Mesto and lost fourth place to Pendrel. Linda Indergand took a big step forward in Nove Mesto. With her eleventh place, the young athlete from Uri has successfully emerged from the U23 category. It is quite possible that Indergand will crack the top 10 this season - perhaps even in Albstadt.

In the U23 categories, the starting position for the Swiss is also good. Lars Forster and Andri Frischknecht are in strong shape. They should therefore be able to repeat their performances from Nove Mesto a week later in Albstadt. In the U23 women's race, Alessandra Keller missed the podium in the Czech Republic. In Albstadt, the 19-year-old now has another chance to show off her skills. With Ramona Forchini and Andrea Waldis, two other riders are in the hunt for the podium.

Preview clip World Cup Albstadt

World Cup Albstadt in numbers
445 athletes from 40 different nations have registered for the third edition of the Albstadt World Cup. It will be the 190th Cross-Country World Cup in the 25-year history of the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup. All in all, the organizers are expecting between 1800 and 2000 participants during the weekend, including the short marathon and the Alb-Gold Juniors Trophy. This is the eleventh edition of the Gonso Albstadt MTB Classic.

www.albstadt-mtb-classic.de
www.uci.ch