The Swiss downhill team came away empty-handed in the downhill at the Mountain Bike World Championships in Andorra. Lisa Baumann comes fifth, Camille Balanche takes 8th place, the men have no chance.
31.08.2024, 14:16
31.08.2024, 17:42
SDA
Even though European champion Lisa Baumann missed out on bronze by 1.05 seconds in the Pal Arinsal ski destination and had mixed feelings, she underlined her great potential. The 23-year-old from Neuchâtel is only contesting her second proper downhill season. In 2018, she competed as a junior in cross-country at the World Championships in Lenzerheide before finding her way to the fastest mountain bike discipline via enduro.
The 34-year-old Balanche has already won three medals at downhill world championships - she took gold in 2020. Nevertheless, 8th place is to be highly valued. A year ago, the Neuchâtel native crashed at the same venue and suffered bruising to her chest and a moderate traumatic brain injury, the consequences of which she still feels today. Balanche showed a clean run, but understandably did not push herself to the absolute limit.
Triple for Valentina Höll
Austria's Valentina Höll won her third World Championship title in a row. She fought a thrilling duel for gold with France's Myriam Nicole, which she decided in her favor by 0.52 seconds. The 34-year-old Nicole made it onto the podium at her eighth World Championships in a row; she missed 2023 due to the effects of a concussion. Bronze in Andorra went to Great Britain's Tahnee Seagrave.
Next year, the World Championships will take place in Champéry in the canton of Valais, where Baumann won the European Championships three weeks earlier. Then it should work out with the World Championship medal for the Swiss.
Defending champion falls
Frenchman Loris Vergier won gold in the men's World Championships for the first time. His compatriot and defending champion Loic Bruni crashed in the final third of the course after setting the best intermediate time. He remained uninjured and offered the audience a few show interludes. The best Swiss rider was Lino Lehmann in 56th place, 9 seconds behind with a winning time of 2:38 minutes.
