Wiedenroth defeats Tonso and narrows the World Cup gap; Gilloux prevails over Ryf after a physical battle

Dutchman van Eck returns after injury while Team challenge one by UNNO makes its debut

 

Girona (Spain), Friday 22 September 2023 – The UCI E-MTB XC World Cup’s Sixth Round unfolded at the Sea Otter Europe Festival with a lot of action and drama.

Girona Round Race 1 Start

Day 1 kicked off with the morning’s Qualirace, where Justine Tonso and Jérôme Gilloux (Lapierre Overvolt) stole the show by securing the Raspini Pole Position.

Raspini Pole Position Winners Justine Tonso and Jérôme Gilloux (Lapierre Overvolt)

French teammates’ initial dominance didn’t stop there, as they were the first to charge into the first turn, clinching the Fassi Holeshot.

Fassi Holeshot owners Justine Tonso and Jérôme Gilloux

With grid positions established, the action in Girona began to heat up as Sofia Wiedenroth (Specialized) delivered a high-level performance to obtain a comfortable win over World Cup Leader Justine Tonso, who struggled through the race as she wasn’t feeling a 100% good.

Fassi Holeshot owners Justine Tonso and Jérôme Gilloux

Wiedenroth’s triumph could play a crucial role in her quest to become the Champion.

“It was a really hard race. Although I didn’t win the Qualirace, I knew I had the speed, and I really wanted to win. I started off well, but it became chaotic as a few riders crashed. I wasn’t sure what had happened, but I did my best to avoid trouble and then pushed myself to the limit. I focused on the finish line because in E-Bike races, creating distance can be quite challenging. I was aware that staying at the front and out of trouble would have given me a solid advantage”, said Wiedenroth.

Meanwhile, Tonso had to dig deep to maintain her second-place position against WES debutant Barbora Vojta (Team challenge one by UNNO), showing her talent on an improved circuit with flawless technical conditions.

Race 1 Women’s Podium

Kathrin Stirnemann (Thömus Maxon) finished fourth in the Women’s race, followed by Antonia Daubermann (Advanced E-Racing) in fifth.

World Cup fight is on

 

Joris Ryf (Specialized) and Gilloux engaged in a battle throughout the race, swapping positions lap after lap.

Jérôme Gilloux (Lapierre Overvolt)

They went all-in exhausting every strategy and pushing their physical limits to the max. However, it was the Frenchman and Current World Cup Leader who prevailed as the Race Winner.

Jérôme Gilloux (Lapierre Overvolt) and Joris Ryf (Specialized)

“It was a very fast race, Joris (Ryf) and I. We started very fast, I took the Holeshot, which was not my goal for the weekend, so that’s good. I managed to take the lead at that narrow turn at the start and had to manage my effort. Earlier in the morning I made a little mistake in the Qualirace and 1 second only separated me from Joris, but in the race, I didn’t want to get to a photo finish with Joris, so I had to manage some proper gap, after many overtaking”, said “The Specialist” Gilloux.

Taking the third spot on the podium was the Italian Mirko Tabacchi (RDR Italia Factory), who had to overcome technical difficulties on more than one occasion, managing to keep fighting also thanks to several things happening all around to other riders ahead of it.

Race 1 Men’s Podium

Just to mention one above, Ismael Esteban (LOGOS ENERGIA – BH) who qualified third and was given it all as a podium contender broke his chain and had to stop in the technical zone for a while.

Tabacchi’s hard-fought podium was followed by Rico Libesch (Advanced E-Racing) as fourth with Remy Gena (Team challenge one by UNNO) rounding out the top five.

After an intense Women’s and Men’s battle, Girona displayed outstanding performances from both, but the Round isn’t over yet, as tomorrow the riders move on to Race 2.

Entry Lists, Race Live Timing and Results HERE
Download the photogallery HERE
WES Girona Event Schedule and Race Maps HERE
Download this Press Release in PDF HERE