The second round of the 2021 UCI XC World Cup in Nove Mesto tested riders with some tricky conditions. Notably, Thomas Pidcock (who took his first elite win) was the first British man to win an XCO World Cup since 1994. As the last race in the Olympic qualification process, Nove Mesto brought with it extra pressure for riders.
In the women’s race, Loana Lecomte took her second win of the season, positioning herself in a good place to keep hold of the leader’s jersey. She also finished with the biggest ever margin in an XC World Cup race. There were crashes and mechanicals due to the conditions, but some tight and intense racing. This season is already so exciting, with new faces testing the seasoned pros.
Results:
Nove Mesto XC World Cup 2021
| Elite Women | Elite Men |
| 1. Loana Lecomte: 1:25:13 | 1. Thomas Pidcock: 1:20:55 |
| 2. Haley Batten: 1:26:52 | 2. Mathieu van der Poel: 1:21:55 |
| 3. Rebecca McConnell: 1:27:04 | 3. Mathias Flรผckiger: 1:22:10 |
| 4. Pauline Ferrand Prevot: 1:27:23 | 4. Ondลej Cink: 1:22:55 |
| 5. Evie Richards: 1:27:40 | 5. Jordan Sarrou: 1:23:16 |
See the full results here.
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Full Highlights
The course was pretty slippery come Sunday following a week of rain in the run up to the race. Many riders had to run parts of the course usually rideable thanks to the difficult conditions. The battle between Pidcock and Van der Poel was an intense one to watch. Catch up on everything in the full highlights below.
Can we also have some coverage of the U23s?
Hattie in 5th and 3 GB men in the top 15.