This year’s UCI Mountain Bike World Cup presented by Shimano kicks off this weekend in what has become the traditional opening venue – Pietermaritzburg, South Africa.
Crowned World Champion in Pietermaritzburg last year, Nino Schurter will be looking to confirm in South Africa this weekend. Photo: UCI
After missing the World Cup last year when it hosted the World Championships, Pietermaritzburg will see the top downhill and cross-country riders from around the world compete for the first World Cup wins of the season on April 12 and 13.
Pietermaritzburg did not rest on its laurels after a very successful World Championships last fall, instead revising and revamping both the downhill and cross-country circuits.
The action begins Friday afternoon with the qualifying runs for the Men’s and Women’s downhill, which will seed the top performers for the World Cup event on Saturday.
The fields for both men and women are very strong, with only one big name missing – 2013 World Cup Champion Steve Smith (Devinci Global Racing), who is recovering from surgery on his foot after an early season crash.
Despite Smith’s absence, the men’s field will be strong, with World Champion Greg Minnaar (Santa Cruz Syndicate), who won the world title here in his home town last fall, anxious to put on a good show for his local fans.
He will face stiff competition from Gee Atherton (GT Factory Racing), who lost the World Cup title last year by the narrowest of margins, and Mik Hannah (Hutchinson UR), who finished second to Minnaar on this course at the World Championships by a scant 0.396 seconds.
On the women’s side for the downhill, Rachel Atherton (GT Factory Racing) will be looking to repeat the success she had here last fall when she took the world title. However, Tracey Hannah (Hutchinson UR) won in Pietermaritzburg at the 2012 World Cup, and former World Champion Emmeline Ragot (Lapierre Gravity Republic) was second to Atherton at the World Championships. – Boxscore
