There weren’t many surprises at the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships on Saturday in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa.
Nino Schurter of Switzerland defended his world championship in the men’s cross country race, and Julie Bresset of France defended her world championship in the women’s cross country race.
Three-time Olympian and Durangoan Todd Wells finished 32nd overall and was the second American across the finish line, 6 minutes, 17 seconds behind repeat-champion Schurter, who finished the seven-lap, 32.9-kilometer race in 1 hour, 40 minutes and 17 seconds.
Lea Davison of Jericho, Vt., was the top American on Saturday. She earned a top-10 result in ninth place, 3:41 behind Bresset.
Georgia Gould of Fort Collins finished 27th, while Mary McConneloug of Chillmark, Mass., finished 30th and another Coloradan, Judy Freeman of Littleton, finished 36th.
Maja Wloszczowski of Poland finished five seconds from Bresset, who raced the six-lap, 28.2-kilometer course in 1:42.54. Wloszczowski finished runner-up, and Esther Suss of Switzerland finished third, 1:06 arrears.
Manuel Fumic of Germany finished seven seconds back of Schuster for silver, and Jose Antonio Hermida Ramos of Spain finished 21 seconds back for bronze.
Stephen Ettinger of Bozeman, Mont., was the top American in the men’s cross country race in 23rd, 5:06 behind Schuster and 1:11 ahead of Wells. Ettinger and Wells both got caught behind an early crash and struggled to make up the lost time.
Michael Broderick of Chillmark, Mass., finished 57th.
On Thursday, Durango DEVO and Sweet Elite cyclist Kaylee Blevins finished 16th in the women’s juniors race.
On Friday, Durango DEVO alumnus and Fort Lewis College cyclist Howard Grotts finished 12th in the men’s U-23 race.
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