Sofie Pederson confirmed her favoritism and became the under-23 European XCO champion. The Dane dominated the race from the start and finished the seven laps (one start loop, one start lap and five full laps) in 1h12m14.543s, ahead of Swiss Ronja Blöchlinger and Noëlle Buri, who arrived 1m36.987s and 2m03.869s later, respectively, and completed the podium.
The race quickly began to take shape, with Sofie Pederson and Ronja Blöchlinger taking the first two positions, wich they kept until the end of the race. The only change was the gap that increased lap after lap, both between the two of them – the ease with which Sofie Pederson stood out was impressive – and for the other runners.
The battle for third place, on the other hand, was intense. The group of contenders for the last place on the podium, however, shortened lap after lap until it was reduced to a two-women battle between Noëlle Buri (Switzerland) and Sina Thiel (Germany). As they entered the finish line, the two riders were very close, but the Swiss overtook the German in the last curve of the course and crossed the finish line in third place.
The European MTB Championship, that has been taking place since Thursday in Anadia, comes to an end this Sunday afternoon. The XCO men’s under-23 race, scheduled for 2 pm, also marks the end of the competition.
