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Domenica 14 giugno 2026
UCI XCO World Cup: Boichis and Rissveds Conquer Slopes of Saalfelden Leogang -Salzburgerland
The WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series was treated to a set of pulsating races at the Epic Bike Park in Saalfelden Leogang – Salzburgerland (Austria). The iconic venue is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year and provided one of the toughest tests on the UCI Cross-country Olympic (XCO) World Cup circuit.
Adrien Boichis (Specialized Factory Racing) clinched the Men’s Elite victory thanks to a devastating last lap attack, beating Luca Martin (Cannondale Factory Racing) into second and Bjorn Riley (Scott-SRAM MTB Racing Team) third. Meanwhile, Jenny Rissveds (Canyon XC Racing) took her first win of season and eighth Women’s Elite UCI XCO World Cup victory. Paul Schehl (Lexware Mountainbike Team) and Valentina Corvi (Canyon XC Racing) took the Under-23 UCI XCO World Cup wins in their respective categories.
Those results saw Specialized Factory Racing top the team ranking of the weekend, ahead of Thömus maxon in second and Scott-SRAM MTB Racing Team. After three rounds Specialized Factory Racing have a healthy lead in the overall standings.
RISSVEDS RETURNS TO PODIUM TOP STEP WITH COMMANDING RIDE
Jenny Rissveds (Canyon XC Racing) sent a message to her rivals with a commanding solo victory in Saalfelden Leogang – Salzburgerland. Heavy rain and slippery conditions at the start made for dramatic racing for the Women’s Elite competitors. Savilia Blunk (Decathlon Ford Racing Team) got off to the perfect start up the opening climb, before colliding with Rissveds and crashing on the first descent - resulting in her moving from first to last. At the front Puck Pieterse (Alpecin-Premier Tech) was the only rider who followed Rissveds in her initial charge.
Sina Frei (Specialized Factory Racing) was looking for her second double win of the season and fought her way into contention on the opening lap, before a series of crashes ended her podium fight.
Mistakes from her opponents allowed Rissveds to build a slender margin of 10 seconds. Meanwhile, Swiss riders Nicole Koller (Lapierre PXR Racing) and Alessandra Keller (Thömus maxon) showed their endurance on the gruelling course and joined Pieterse in the chase. Taking the last lap bell Rissveds had a commanding lead of a minute, while Pieterse gapped Keller by seven seconds in the battle for second.
Rissveds was unstoppable as she took a clear win by 56 seconds ahead of Pieterse and a delighted Keller in third. After her first lap incident Blunk raced back through the field to finish an impressive fifth position.
Rissveds leads the overall standings after three rounds, some 80 points ahead of Frei: “I wanted to be brave today and leave here with no disappointment,” said Rissveds. “I went for it and it worked. We have three overall leaders in the team at the moment, Thibaut (François Baudry), Valentina (Corvi) and myself, which is really cool.”
BOICHIS TIMES PERFECT ATTACK TO TAKE MAIDEN WIN
Adrien Boichis (Specialized Factory Racing) launched a devastating last lap attack to win his first Men’s Elite UCI XCO World Cup. The wet conditions from the morning racing made way for dry and warm weather. The drying course and steep descents resulted in some early crashes, with Scott-SRAM MTB Racing Team team-mates Fabio Püntener and Filippo Colombo two of those to lose time.
The relentless pace and tough nature of the course resulted in Adrien Boichis (Specialized Factory Racing), Mathis Azzaro (Origine Racing Division), Luca Martin (Cannondale Factory Racing) and Bjorn Riley (Scott-SRAM MTB Racing Team) going clear early on.
However, the tough terrain at the Epic Bike Park also tested rider’s equipment and a flat rear tyre for Riley dropped him out of the leading group, while Jordan Sarrou (BMC Factory Racing) suffered the same fate.
Simone Avondetto (Wilier-Vittoria Factory Team) was determined not to miss the podium battle and worked his way to make a leading quartet. Azzaro was the first rider to show his hand and his fourth lap attack resulted in Avondetto dropping back.
French National Champion Martin also showed signs of weakness but used his technical skills and closed a gap of seven seconds on one descent to re-group with the leaders heading into the penultimate lap.
Boichis left his winning effort for the final steep climb of the race, distancing Martin and then Azzaro. It was an emotional victory for him, finishing ahead of Azzaro in second and Martin third. However, following the race Azzaro was disqualified for an earlier infringement in the technical zone. After finishing runner-up for a third consecutive time Martin leads the overall standings.
UCI Cross-country Olympic World Cup | Men Elite standings
Following his win Boichis said: “It’s the highest thing ever. There is no bigger race than the UCI World Cup and there are no stronger people than Elite UCI World Cup winners. To think that today I was the best in the world is something special and I’ll never forget.
“I have beautiful memories here. In 2023 I won my first Under-23 UCI World Cup. I just wanted to execute my plan of having a conservative start and then build through the race. I really believed in myself. When I was hurting. I was thinking that the others were hurting more. On the last kicker I went all out to the top.”
CORVI AND SCHEHL PROVE STRONGEST IN UNDER-23 CATEGORY
Valentina Corvi (Canyon XC Racing) led the Women’s Under-23 race from start to finish in a show of strength on the gruelling Saalfelden Leogang – Salzburgerland course. The Italian also won at MONA YongPyong (South Korea) in muddy conditions and provided a tape-to-tape win in Austria.
Corvi was looking for redemption after crashing in Friday’s UCI XCC World Cup and led by 16 seconds after the opening lap, grewing her margin into an unassailable one. Swiss rider Fiona Schibler rode through the field from ninth on the first lap through to finish second. She showed her talent to match the lap times of Corvi as the race progressed, eventually finishing 1 minute and 14 seconds back. Meanwhile, Monique Halter (Thömus Akros-Youngstars) placed third.
Corvi’s victory extended her lead at top of the overall standings ahead of Schiber. “It’s amazing,” said Corvi. “On Friday in the XCC I crashed, so I started today with high motivation to take the win on such a hard track. I just pushed so hard and the feeling was super-good. I just kept pushing and kept my concentration high, especially in the downhill which were sticky and difficult conditions.
UCI Cross-country Olympic World Cup | Women U23 standings
Paul Schehl (Lexware Mountainbike Team) made it a weekend double in the Men’s Under-23 UCI XCO World Cup. The German rider was given a welcome confidence boost by winning Friday’s UCI XCC World Cup.
Nicholas Halter (Thömus Akros-Youngstars) joined Schehl at the front during the opening lap. However, the second lap saw Schehl pull out what turned out to be his winning advantage. Behind, Alix Andre-Gallis (Decathlon Ford Racing Team) came through to finish second just 16 seconds back and Naël Rouffiac (Origine Racing Division) placed third. A fifth placed finish was enough for Thibaut François Baudry (Canyon CX Racing) to lead the overall standings after three rounds.
Following his win Schehl said: “It was a tough, mental race. I suffered some mechanical issues on laps three, four and five. It was so hard for me to keep going after the XCO in Nové Město Na Moravě where I had such big mental problems. I’m so stoked with myself about how I kept going, it’s amazing. It’s been a great week with the team and I’ve enjoyed every second.
Ultimo aggiornamento:
14/06/2026 19:28