DPA
Elancourt (France)
Briton Thomas Pidcock overcame a puncture and a final attack from French rival Victor Koretzky to claim back-to-back Olympic gold in mountainbike cycling at the Paris Games on Monday.
Pidcock fought back from around 40 seconds down after needing a new front wheel midway through the race and then battled with long-time leader Koretzky and South African Alan Hatherly.
Koretzky attacked in the eighth and final lap at Colline d’Elancourt in a bid to emulate countrywoman Pauline Ferrand Prevot’s triumph the previous day. But Pidcock closed the gap and then robustly took the lead after going around a few trees in a different way than Koretzky, with both touching wheels going into a narrow section which brought Koretzky to almost a standstill.
Pidcock won by nine seconds, amid jeers from several French fans, with Hatherly another two seconds back for bronze.
Pidcock’s success came just 16 days after he withdrew from the Tour de France with a coronavirus infection.
“What I’m feeling right now is a bit all over the place. All I know is that I did whatever I could in that race to win,”
he said.
“The French crowds are incredible. Obviously, they’re very patriotic for the French. Not so much for me.
“The Olympics is the biggest thing for me and to be able to just still pull that off despite what happened is pretty incredible.”
Koretzky said: “It’s a mixed feeling. I wasn’t far from the gold, I didn’t miss by much. Thomas Pidcock was very strong, when he came back I knew I could beat him because he made a big effort to close the gap.
“Unfortunately, I was a little careless in the descent. (There was) some gravel on the track, and I took some with my front wheel and I lost a part of the gap I had on Tom. I’m really disappointed, this mistake cost me the gold medal.”
“In the woods, he overtook me and took my shoe off, it was difficult to do something at this moment.” Swiss veteran Nino Schurter finished ninth as he missed a fourth medal in the event following 2016 gold, 2012 silver and 2008 bronze.
