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MTB World Cup XC #2 - CDM
Offenburg, Germany, April 26-27, 2008
2007 results Schedule Preview Start List
Schedule
- Race 1 - April 26: Junior men and women cross country (non-World Cup event),
- Race 2 - April 26: Master men and women cross country (non-World Cup Event),
- Race 3 - April 27: Elite women cross country,
- Race 4 - April 27: Elite men cross country,
Racers ready for round two
By Luke Webber in Offenburg, Germany
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Just 200 miles away from Houffalize, Offenburg on the edge of the Black Forest in south Germany hosts round two of the mountain bike World Cup. Because of this short distance there has been something of a split in team strategy - some riders deciding to go home, some staying in Houffalize until later in the week and others travelling immediately to Offenburg.
So far conditions have been damp and slightly humid, with rain overnight and low clouds over the hills. Thursday was a big improvement and for the first time, there was a clear view across the vineyards, and a course inspection revealed a mainly dry lap made up of a clay mud base with roots. There is one sticky section but with the good forecast, this should dry out just fine for a fast race. The worst affected sections of uphill have also been treated to a top layer of hardcore to prevent damage.
If the forecasts turn bad, however, and the same conditions should strike as in 2007, expect a lot of running especially through the crowd pleasing sections. Worldclassdrop, Wolfsdrop, Snakepit, Dualspeed and Northshore will all be packed with spectators baying for blood!
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Even though the lap is two kilometers less than in Belgium, start numbers are barely down, so expect a lot of riders exceeding the one lap limit. Those lucky enough to score a top sixty in round one will be gridded whereas the rest will rely on UCI ranking and a pair of sharp elbows. And, while the difference is only two kilometers on paper, there are very few passing places with 90% of the course singletrack and through the trees. While this will give riders at the front with better technical skills the advantage it will cost those outside the top 50.
Fortunately, Americans Adam Craig and Todd Wells prop up the top 15 following an excellent opening round, and this start is just the opportunity they need to support their continued quest to make the US Olympic team. Speaking after the Houffalize race, Craig was well aware the difference a second row grid position can make - last year he had to battle from the back.
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"World Cup number one is always a challenge for me but it worked out great. I was half asleep on the start line but over the next few weeks I can adjust and hopefully the results will come. A good start position for Offenburg keeps morale high and is another thing not to worry about."
Thanks to a convincing win in Houffalize current World Cup leader Julien Absalon will be favourite to make it two for two. Last year he enjoyed the course and in such great condition nobody would bet against him. Other favorites include Nino Schurter, Christoph Sauser, Jakob Fuglsang, Cédric Ravanel, Jean-Christophe Peraud, José Antonio Hermida Ramos and Roel Paulissen.
The women's race is far harder to call. While Ren Chengyuan finished top in Belgium, it was not a convincing win, rather one benefiting from others misfortune. Weekend two should prove a much sterner test against the likes of Irina Kalentieva, Marie-Helene Premont, Margarita Fullana, Georgia Gould, and Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjaa.
Stay tuned to Cyclingnews for the latest from Offenburg on Sunday.
Photography
For a thumbnail gallery of these images, click here
Images by Luke Webber / www.lukewebber.com
- Preparations for the arena, including a grandstand are already in full flow
- Out on course all the singletrack is being raked to try and give some overtaking options. This is wishful thinking.
- One of several of the more constructed downhills on the Offenburg course.
- Thursday was the first time you could see the magnificent view stretching across into neighbouring Rammesweier.
- This long switchback downhill is reminiscent of UK trail centres and looks great fun to ride.
- The Wolfsdrop is the steepest and most technically demanding on course and caused several top riders to stop and think.
Start list
Elite men 1 Julien Absalon (Fra) Orbea 2 Nino Schurter* (Swi) Swisspower MTB Team 3 Christoph Sauser (Swi) Specialized Factory Racing 4 Jakob Fuglsang (Den) Cannondale-Vredestein 5 Cédric Ravanel (Fra) Team Lapierre International 6 Jean-Christophe Peraud (Fra) Orbea 7 José Antonio Hermida Ramos (Spa) Multivan Merida Biking Team 8 Roel Paulissen (Bel) Cannondale-Vredestein 9 Kashi Leuchs (NZl) Cannondale-Vredestein 10 Martin Gujan (Swi) Athleticum-MTB-Team 11 Todd Wells (USA) GT Mongoose / Pacific Cycle 12 Marco Aurelio Fontana (Ita) 13 Wolfram Kurschat (Ger) Topeak Ergon Racing Team 14 Adam Craig (USA) Giant Mountain Bike Team 15 Jürg Graf (Swi) Swisspower MTB Team 16 Inaki Lejarreta Errasti (Spa) Orbea 17 Oliver Beckingsale (GBr) Giant Mountain Bike Team 18 Florian Vogel (Swi) Swisspower MTB Team 19 Yader Zoli (Ita) Giant Italia Team 20 Ralph Naef (Swi) Multivan Merida Biking Team 21 Ruben Ruzafa Cueto (Spa) Orbea 22 Seamus Mcgrath (Can) 23 Christoph Soukup (Aut) 24 Jaroslav Kulhavy (Cze) 25 Rudi Van Houts (Ned) Dolphin-Trek Mountainbike Racing Team 26 Fredrik Kessiakoff (Swe) Full-Dynamix-IT 27 Tony Longo (Ita) Full-Dynamix-IT 28 Lukas Flückiger (Swi) Athleticum-MTB-Team 29 Alexis Vuillermoz* (Fra) Scott Valloire Galibier 30 Moritz Milatz (Ger) Multivan Merida Biking Team 31 Hannes Metzler (Aut) Giant Mountain Bike Team 32 Peter Riis Andersen (Den) Team ALB-Gold Mountainbike 33 Till Marx (Swi) Swisspower MTB Team 34 Tim Bohme (Ger) Team ALB-Gold Mountainbike 35 Michael Weiss (Aut) 36 Daniel Mcconnell (Aus) 37 Martino Fruet (Ita) 38 Marc Trayter Alemany (Spa) Ecp-Tau Ceramica 39 Karl Platt (Ger) Team Bulls 40 Patrik Gallati* (Swi) Swisspower MTB Team 41 Karl Markt (Aut) 42 Thomas Frischknecht (Swi) Swisspower MTB Team 43 Milan Spesny (Cze) Merida Biking Team 44 Matthias Flückiger* (Swi) Athleticum-MTB-Team 45 Emil Lindgren (Swe) Full-Dynamix-IT 46 Bas Peters (Ned) 47 Gion Manetsch (Swi) Athleticum-MTB-Team 48 Andreas Kugler (Swi) Fischer-BMC 49 Ricky Federau (Can) 50 Jochen Kass (Ger) Team ALB-Gold Mountainbike 51 Sergio Mantecon Gutierrez (Spa) Cemelorca-Seguros10.Com 52 Frank Schotman (Ned) 53 Torsten Marx (Ger) Team ALB-Gold Mountainbike 54 Marek Galinski (Pol) JBG2-APC Presmet 55 Filip Meirhaeghe (Bel) Versluys-Landbouwkrediet MTB Team 56 Burry Stander* (RSA) GT Mongoose / Pacific Cycle 57 Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski (USA) Subaru-Gary Fisher 58 Carlos Coloma Nicolas (Spa) Ecp-Tau Ceramica 59 Chris Jongewaard (Aus) Dolphin-Trek Mountainbike Racing Team 60 Cristobal Silva (Chi) 61 Ivan Alvarez Gutierrez (Spa) Giant Italia Team 62 Bart Brentjens (Ned) Dolphin-Trek Mountainbike Racing Team 63 Jeremiah Bishop (USA) Trek-VW 64 Max Plaxton (Can) Rocky Mountain 65 Javier Puschel (Chi) 66 Stefan Sahm (Ger) Team Bulls 67 Jan Skarnitzl* (Cze) 68 Michael Broderick (USA) 69 Alban Lakata (Aut) Dolphin-Trek Mountainbike Racing Team 70 Marti Gispert Labarta (Spa) Ecp-Tau Ceramica 71 Ji Jianhua (Chn) 72 Derek Zandstra (Can) 73 Sergiy Rysenko (Ukr) Isd-International 74 Mannie Heymans (Nam) 75 Rene Tann (Ger) 76 Maxim Gogolev (Rus) 77 Kristian Hynek (Cze) 78 Stéphane Tempier* (Fra) Gewiss Bianchi 79 Lachlan Norris* (Aus) 80 Hector Leonardo Paez Leon (Col) Gewiss Bianchi 81 Balz Weber (Swi) Bikepark.Ch BMC 82 Sam Jurekovic* (USA) 83 Christof Bischof (Swi) 84 Chun Hing Chan (HKg) 85 Jelmer Pietersma (Ned) Beone Chainreaction Mountainbiketeam 86 Dario Alejandro Gasco* (Arg) Massi 87 Ludovic Dubau (Fra) 88 Silvio Bundi (Swi) Giant Mountain Bike Team 89 Samuel Schultz (USA) Subaru-Gary Fisher 90 Bjorn Brems* (Bel) 91 Igor Bogdan (Ukr) Isd-International 92 Marc Colom* (Fra) 93 Martin Kraler (Aut) 94 Magnus Darvell (Swe) 95 Robert Gehbauer* (Aut) Multivan Merida Biking Team 96 Andras Melts (Hun) 97 Klaus Nielsen (Den) Team ALB-Gold Mountainbike 98 Denis Vorontsov* (Rus) 99 François Bailly Maitre (Fra) Scott Valloire Galibier 100 Mirko Pirazzoli (Ita) 101 Israel Nunez Baticon (Spa) Massi 102 Pavel Boudny (Cze) 103 Matous Ulman (Cze) 104 Filip Eberl (Cze) 105 Alexey Medvedev (Rus) 106 Juan Ped Trujillo Hernandez (Spa) Cemelorca-Seguros10.Com 107 Olivier Maignan (Fra) 108 Barry Wicks (USA) Kona 109 Evgeniy Pechenin (Rus) Format-Udmurtia 110 Kris Sneddon (Can) Kona 111 Dries Govaerts* (Bel) Lingier-Versluys Team 112 Fabian Giger* (Swi) 113 Roland Plank (Aut) 114 Nicolas Filippi (Fra) Scott Valloire Galibier 115 Robert Kircher (Aut) 116 Martin Loo* (Est) Merida Biking Team 117 Tim Wijnants* (Bel) Dolphin-Trek Mountainbike Racing Team 118 Andrea Tiberi (Ita) Giant Italia Team 119 Pierre Lebreton (Fra) BH-SR. Suntour 120 Kristian Torgersen (Nor) Team Etto Hoydahl 121 Taavi Selder (Est) 122 Roman Rametsteiner (Aut) 123 Adrian Brzozka* (Pol) JBG2-APC Presmet 124 Luka Mezgec* (Slo) 125 Martin Bratland (Nor) Team Etto Hoydahl 126 Frank Beemer* (Ned) 127 Liam Killeen (GBr) Specialized Factory Racing 128 Axel Bult (Ned) 129 Gerald Hauer (Aut) 130 Pascal Meyer* (Swi) 131 Julio Humberto Caro Silva (Col) Gewiss Bianchi 132 Hannes Genze (Ger) Team ALB-Gold Mountainbike 133 Nicolas Bazin (Fra) BH-SR. Suntour 134 Paul Van Der Ploeg* (Aus) 135 Robert Mennen (Ger) 136 Uwe Hochenwarter* (Aut) 137 Mattias Wengelin* (Swe) 138 Nicolas Vermeulen (Bel) Lingier-Versluys Team 139 Giuseppe Lamastra (Ita) 140 Alexander Wetterhall* (Swe) 141 Umberto Corti* (Ita) Team Cbe Tecnoimpianti A.S.D 142 Pierre Geoffroy Plantet (Fra) Team Lapierre International 143 Jiri Novak (Cze) 144 Cristian Cominelli* (Ita) Gewiss Bianchi 145 Ludovic Mottet (Bel) Windose Houffalize 146 Nikolay Zagulyaev (Rus) 147 Anders Ljungberg (Swe) 148 Jérome Chevallier (Fra) BH-SR. Suntour 149 Steffen Thum (Ger) Team Mayer Stevens 150 Lee Williams (GBr) 151 Hans Becking* (Ned) Beone Chainreaction Mountainbiketeam 152 Max Oste Macdonald* (Swe) 153 Dmitry Medvedev* (Rus) 154 Anders Hovdenes* (Nor) Team Etto Hoydahl 155 Colin Cares* (USA) 156 Oriol Morata Abril (Spa) 157 Wilko Rochow (Ger) Team Mayer Stevens 158 Andi Weinhold* (Ger) 159 Hubert Pollinger (Ita) Sunshine Racers Asv Nals 160 Jonathan Galante (Fra) 161 Ruud Rentmeester (Ned) 162 Michal Plesnik (Svk) 163 David Lozano Riba* (Spa) Msc Bikes 164 Ian Field* (GBr) 165 Guillaume Vinit* (Fra) Scott Valloire Galibier 166 Vero Lüscher* (Ger) Team Mayer Stevens 167 Arnaud Grosjean (Fra) BH-SR. Suntour 168 Frank Lehmann (Ger) 169 Pascal Hossay* (Bel) 170 Marcel Wildhaber (Swi) 171 Patxi Cia Apezteguia (Spa) 172 Tim Ottens (Ned) Beone Chainreaction Mountainbiketeam 173 Evgeniy Medvetsskyy (Ukr) 174 Rick Evers (Ned) Beone Chainreaction Mountainbiketeam 175 Niels Wubben* (Ned) 176 Ondrej Zeleny (Cze) 177 Martin Fanger* (Swi) 178 Daniel Suter (Swi) 179 Sebastian Szraucner* (Ger) 180 Haimy Shlomi* (Isr) 181 Nathan Haas* (Aus) 182 Mitchell Peterson* (USA) 183 Ivan Planzer (Swi) 184 Vivien Legastelois* (Fra) Team Lapierre International 185 Samuele Porro* (Ita) Team Cbe Tecnoimpianti A.S.D 186 Rob Vangenechten* (Bel) 187 Maxime Marotte* (Fra) BH-SR. Suntour 188 Rumen Voigt* (Ger) 189 Jelmer Jubbega* (Ned) 190 Andriy Gumenyuk* (Ukr) 191 Alexis Chenevier* (Fra) 192 Calle Friberg (Swe) 193 Hugo Navarian* (Fra) Team Cibf Keops 194 Mattias Nilsson* (Swe) 195 Peter Coddens (Bel) Lingier-Versluys Team 196 Sergio Pulido Rodriguez* (Spa) Cemelorca-Seguros10.Com 197 Nieck Busser* (Ned) 198 Heiko Gutmann* (Ger) 199 Josef Kamler* (Cze) Ceska Sporitelna MTB 200 Marco Arnold* (Swi) 201 Lukas Kaufmann* (Swi) 202 Erik Nellen* (Ned) Beone Chainreaction Mountainbiketeam 203 Simon Scheiber* (Aut) Sunshine Racers Asv Nals 204 Tobias Ullmann (Ger) Team Xlc Haibike 205 Simon Gegenheimer* (Ger) 206 Nicola Rohrbach* (Swi) Central Ghost Pro Team 207 Jiri Hudecek* (Cze) 208 Sébastien Hansen (Fra) BH-SR. Suntour 209 Michel Luginbuehl* (Swi) 210 Andriy Khripta* (Ukr) 211 Pierre Fuseau (Fra) Team Cibf Keops 212 Andy Eyring* (Ger) 213 Hans Urkens (Bel) Lingier-Versluys Team 214 Severin Disch* (Swi) 215 Thomas Litscher* (Swi) 216 Markus Bauer* (Ger) 217 Freddy Betremiaux* (Fra) BH-SR. Suntour 218 Fabien Canal* (Fra) Team Lapierre International 219 Jo Norskar* (Nor) Team Etto Hoydahl 220 Sebastien Carabin* (Bel) 221 Paul Remy* (Fra) 222 Diego Rosa* (Ita) Giant Italia Team 223 Nicolas Jeantet* (Ita) Team Cbe Tecnoimpianti A.S.D 224 Tim Lemmers* (Ned) 225 David Escolar Ballesteros (Spa) Sunshine Racers Asv Nals 226 Felix Euteneuer* (Ger) 227 Bart Maas* (Ned) Beone Chainreaction Mountainbiketeam 228 Marco Minnaard* (Ned) Beone Chainreaction Mountainbiketeam 229 Jaco Wagenaar* (Ned) Beone Chainreaction Mountainbiketeam 230 Paul Gaillard* (Fra) 231 Markus Knott* (Ger) Team Xlc Haibike 232 Vladislavs Neroznaks (Lat) 233 Steven Garcin* (Fra) 234 Boris Vasilyev (Rus) Format-Udmurtia 235 Ethan Gilmour* (USA) 236 Adrien Pastor* (Fra) Team Cibf Keops 237 Cédric Meinero (Fra) 238 Piotr Brzozka* (Pol) JBG2-APC Presmet Elite women 1 Ren Chengyuan (Chn) 2 Irina Kalentieva (Rus) Topeak Ergon Racing Team 3 Marie-Helene Premont (Can) Rocky Mountain 4 Margarita Fullana (Spa) Massi 5 Georgia Gould (USA) Luna Womens MTB Team 6 Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjaa (Nor) Multivan Merida Biking Team 7 Nathalie Schneitter (Swi) Colnago Cap Arreghini 8 Petra Henzi (Swi) Fischer-BMC 9 Tereza Hurikova (Cze) Ceska Sporitelna MTB 10 Sabine Spitz (Ger) Central Ghost Pro Team 11 Lene Byberg (Nor) Specialized Factory Racing 12 Elisabeth Osl (Aut) Team Ghost International 13 Ying Liu (Chn) 14 Catherine Pendrel (Can) Luna Womens MTB Team 15 Kiara Bisaro (Can) 16 Sabrina Enaux (Fra) Team Lapierre International 17 Blaza Klemencic (Slo) Giant Italia Team 18 Katrin Leumann (Swi) 19 Mary Mc Conneloug (USA) 20 Esther Süss (Swi) 21 Nina Wrobel (Ger) Multivan Merida Biking Team 22 Jingjing Wang (Chn) 23 Heather Irmiger (USA) Subaru-Gary Fisher 24 Laurence Leboucher (Fra) 25 Sandra Walter (Can) 26 Katerina Nash (Cze) Luna Womens MTB Team 27 Wendy Simms (Can) Kona 28 Nina Homovec (Slo) 29 Adelheid Morath (Ger) 30 Magdalena Sadlecka (Pol) Halls Professional MTB Team 31 Tanja Zakelj (Slo) 32 Aleksandra Dawidowicz (Pol) Halls Professional MTB Team 33 Marielle Saner-Guinchard (Swi) Bikepark.Ch BMC 34 Laura Turpijn (Ned) 35 Sarah Koba (Swi) 36 Cécile Rode Ravanel (Fra) Team Lapierre International 37 Susan Haywood (USA) Trek-VW 38 Bernardine Boog-Rauwerda (Ned) 39 Amanda Sin (Can) 40 Anna Villar Argente (Spa) Massi 41 Willow Koerber (USA) Subaru-Gary Fisher 42 Anna Szafraniec (Pol) Halls Professional MTB Team 43 Ivonne Kraft (Ger) 44 Janka Stevkova (Svk) 45 Eva Lechner (Ita) Colnago Cap Arreghini 46 Maja Wloszczowska (Pol) Halls Professional MTB Team 47 Rosara Joseph (NZl) Team Ghost International 48 Maroussia Rusca (Swi) 49 Yolanda Speedy (RSA) 50 Maria Osl (Aut) Sunshine Racers Asv Nals 51 Dellys Starr (Aus) 52 Francisca Campos Salas (Chi) Massi 53 Renata Bucher (Swi) 54 Alexandra Engen (Swe) 55 Arielle Van Meurs (Ned) 56 Emiliy Batty (Can) 57 Nataliya Krompets (Ukr) 58 Kaytee Boyd (NZl) 59 Mical Dyck (Can) 60 Daniela Bunzli Rojas (Chi) 61 Séverine Hansen (Fra) BH-SR. Suntour 62 Helene Marcouyre (Fra) BH-SR. Suntour 63 Ksenia Chernykh (Rus) 64 Elsbeth Van Rooij-Vink (Ned) Beone Chainreaction Mountainbiketeam 65 Evelyn Staffler (Ita) Colnago Cap Arreghini 66 Jenny Copnall (GBr) Subaru-Gary Fisher 67 Laura Metzler (Fra) BH-SR. Suntour 68 Emma Colson (Aus) 69 Julie Krasniak (Fra) Team Lapierre International 70 Katrin Schwing (Ger) Dolphin-Trek Mountainbike Racing Team 71 Vera Andreeva (Rus) 72 Hanna Klein (Ger) 73 Maaris Meier (Est) 74 Githa Michiels (Bel) 75 Oxana Rybakova (Rus) 76 Sandra Dolcerocca (Den) 77 Caroline Mani (Fra) 78 Daniela Campuzano (Mex) 79 Tory Thomas (Aus) 80 Sandra Santanyes Murillo (Spa) Cemelorca-Seguros10.Com 81 Zoe King (Aus) 82 Rowena Fry (Aus) 83 Cristina Mascarreras Sabria (Spa) Conor - Camping La Siesta 84 Judith Pollinger (Ita) Sunshine Racers Asv Nals 85 Kristien Nelen (Bel) 86 Bettina Schmid (Swi) Fischer-BMC 87 Evgenia Belozerova (Rus) 88 Maaike Polspoel (Bel) 89 Therese Rhodes (Aus) 90 Barbara Oberdorfer (Ita) 91 Katherine O'shea (Aus) 92 Agnes Naumann (Ger) 93 Alison Sydor (Can) Rocky Mountain 94 Monique Zeldenrust (Ned) 95 Marie Kunst (Den) 96 Ekaterina Melnikova (Rus) 97 Sofia Shashova (Rus) Format-Udmurtia 98 Tatjana Dold (Ger) 99 Claudia Seidel (Ger) 100 Monika Heuveling (Ned) 101 Kate Potter (Aus) 102 Fabienne Niederberger (Swi) 103 Karin Groen (Ned) 104 Nina Kunz (Ger) 105 Klaartje Legtenberg (Ned) 106 Janine Droz (Swi) 107 Iryna Slobodyan (Ukr) 108 Coralie Redelsperger (Fra) 109 Hanna Israel (Fra) 110 Elisabeth Mottet (Bel) Windose Houffalize 111 Silke Schmidt (Ger) 112 Susan Butler (USA) 113 Jennifer Fischer (Fra) Team Cibf Keops 114 Julie Bresset (Fra) Breiz Mountain 115 Laure Boulay (Fra) Team Cibf Keops 116 Kathrin Stirnemann (Swi) 117 Karen Brouwer (Ned) 118 Berengere Boes (Fra) Breiz Mountain 119 Myriam Saugy (Swi) 120 Fabienne Heinzmann (Swi) Dolphin-Trek Mountainbike Racing Team 121 Nicole Lechl (Ger) Team XLC Haibike * indicates U23 racer
