COMMENCAL NEWS World-Championships-Val-Di-Sole-Gold-for-Myriam-Nicole-Silver-for-Benoit-Coulanges

What an incredible final!
Whilst the track was already wildly technical and physical, heavy rain the night before made the loose dirt and slippery roots even more difficult to handle.

It was Myriam Nicole who stood out in the women’s field! Last one down, she clocked a perfect run without a hitch and took almost 5 seconds out of Marine Cabirou!

"It's awesome! It means a lot to me. I was not able to enjoy the rainbow jersey in 2020 because of the Covid crisis. This time I'll be able to wear it longer and I'm just the happiest! I had a lot of pressure on my shoulders because I knew anything was possible and that I could do it. I’m really proud to have ridden so clean. I was worried that I might have braked too much in some sections, until I heard ‘she’s on fire’ on the tannoy!”

Pompon is in incredible form this season, in addition to this new rainbow jersey (her second after winning in 2019) she is also the current leader of the World Cup series!

The COMMENCAL riders could have had another podium hat-trick after the one in 2020. As consistent as ever, 2020 World Champion Camille Balanche took home the bronze medal after another very impressive run and with a sore ankle from a crash that morning. Her teammate from COMMENCAL Dorval AM Monika Hrastnik, took 4th place. Another incredible race from our ladies!

In fact, the COMMENCAL Dorval AM Team had another medal at these World Championships. Benoit Coulanges is Vice-World Champion by two hundredths of a second! Already very successful in the World Cup, brought incredible speed down The Blake Snake, especially in the second part of the track where he was explosive! After his French Championship title and a silver medal at the European Championships, he is one of the very best riders in the world today. And well done to Greg Minaar once again!

Antoine Vidal, with a long wait on the hot seat, finished these World Championships in a magnificent 12th place! He too is getting faster and faster, his progress in DH and Enduro among the elite fields is incredible! It was a difficult day for Angel Suarez who could have finished in the top places until a crash shattered his hopes. Too bad, in the first part of the track he was the fastest! He took 18th place despite his fall. Good runs for Dylan Levesque and Alex Marin too, in 21st and 22nd.

Hard times for Thibaut Daprela and Amaury Pierron, Thibaut with not one but two crashes and Amaury a mechanical. One to the next in an attempt to get back on the podium next weekend in Lenzerheide for the World Cup!

There was a bronze medal in Junior Women for Gracey Hemstreet, our COMMENCAL Canada rider. Congratulations to her! For the Junior Men, Jackson Goldstone won in his first year on the circuit. Well done!

Thank you to all the riders for these magnificent World Championships! Find more interviews and behind the scenes of this final on the COMMENCAL Instagram account.

Photos: Keno Derleyn / Nico Brizin