The final round of XCM at the Lake Placid UCI World Cup venue proved to be nail-bitingly close in both the men and women’s categories.
Looser clinches the series title
It all came down to a blistering sprint after 100 km of racing at Mt Van Hoevenberg, and Vera Looser wasn’t about to let it slip away. After three grueling laps at the Lake Placid UCI World Cup on a punchy, technical course, the Namibian rider timed her final push perfectly, edging out Rose Van Doorn by the slimmest of margins to secure her second UCI XCM World Cup victory of the season. Their finishing times are exactly the same, Looser just beating Van Doorn.
Looser’s win wasn’t just about the race, though—it also crowned her the overall series champion, leapfrogging Lejla Njemcevic by 50 points. After staying with the lead group through most of the race, Looser knew it would come down to a sprint and played her cards perfectly in the final kilometers.
“Today was a long race but a tactical one,” Looser said. “It’s amazing to win this race overall. The UCI World Cup defines the best rider of the season over all courses, and I think I pulled that off pretty well.”
Schneller triumphs
In a race that stayed tight from start to finish, Simon Schneller showed that when it came to the final sprint, he had the edge. The German rider outpaced a nine-man group in the final stretch to take his first UCI XCM World Cup win. With ten km left, the lead group was still packed with contenders, including series title favorites Fabian Rabensteiner and Héctor Leonardo Páez.
But it was Schneller who seized the moment, surging ahead of Martin Stošek to cross the line first. Rabensteiner wasn’t far behind in third, which was more than enough for him to retain his overall title, extending his lead over Páez by 120 points. The first nine riders crossed the line within three seconds.
“I’m super happy with this title. Back-to-back is not easy,” Rabensteiner said, reflecting on his season. “This course wasn’t so much for me, but I felt strong and could bring home the trophy.”
Canadian Sean Fincham broke the top 20 and came in 16th.
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