Seventeen-year-old Christchurch rider, Winni Goldsbury has made it two wins from two in the UCI MTB Enduro World Series in France.
After a debut victory in Leogang, Austria, the super talented tyro added an impressive win in the under-21 Enduro World Cup in Combloux, in the Haute Savoie region in south-east France.
Goldsbury showed her spirit on and off the bike, stopping to check on close friend Xanthe Robb from Nelson who had crashed on stage two. Robb had been fastest on the opening stage, but crashed on the next stage, with Goldsbury briefly stopping to ensure his friend was not seriously injured/
Goldsbury, who continued on, finishing second fastest on the stage, and after the win has moved to second overall on the World Cup points standing for under-21 women.
Specialized professional Charles Murray was sixth in the elite men, to move to third overall in the elite men’s rankings after four rounds. Defending champion Rich Rude Jnr (USA) claimed the win to extend his lead in the series after the demanding Combloux test with six stages over the 39.2km course which comprised2530m of descending and 1685m of climbing.
Murray started strongly to be third after three stages, before Australian Luke Meier-Smith and Frenchman Alex Rudeau pushed strongly on the second half of the course to claim the podium behind Rude.
Compatriot Matthew Walker (Pivot Factory) finished 18th to move to 12th overall on the standings, with Murray’s brother Craig 35th, Ed Masters 40th and fellow kiwi gravity star Brook MacDonald in 56th.
Murray said that temperatures blazing in France, it proved a massive test with limited water able to be carried and with considerable pressure on time allowances for transitions made for a tough day in the office.
“I was very happy with my day overall as I have had a couple of quieter weeks recovering from the injuries from Leogang,” said Murray.
Goldsbury was second fastest in the opening two stages before being fastest in stage three and again on stage four where she took the overall lead, pushing clear to win by nearly a minute from Simone Kuchynkova. The young kiwi sensation has closed to within 210 points of the Slovakian despite just two starts, with Nelson’s Xanthe Robb eighth overall after not finishing today.
The experienced Rae Morrison (Specialized) bagged another top-10 performance finishing in seventh in the elite women ahead of fellow kiwi riders George Swift in 15th and Louise Kelly 28th. Morrison is in seventh overall in the standings.
Best of the kiwis in the under-21 men was Rotorua’s Joe Millington (Yeti-Fox) who was 11th with Harry Kneebone (Tauranga) 17th and Matthew Fairbrother (Christchurch) 29th.
The MTB action remains in the Haute Savoie region for world cup rounds for cross-country and downhill next weekend in nearby Les Gets, with enduro facing round five of the World Series in Valais, Switzerland in two weeks.
Results, UCI MTN Enduro World Series, round 4, Combloux, France:
Elite men: Rich Rude Jnr (USA) 25:33.39, 1; Luke Meier-Smith (AUS) at 2.199s, 2; Alex Rudeau (FRA) at 3.230, 3. Also: Charles Murray (NZL, Specialized Enduro) at 20.349, 6; Matthew Walker (NZL, Pivot Factory) at 55.068, 18; Craig Murray (NZL) at 1:31.215, 35; Ed Masters (NZL, Pivot Factory) at 1:41.503, 40.
Points: Rude 1837, 1; Slawomir Lukasik (POL) 1450, 2; Murray 1443, 3. Also: Walker 730, 12.
Elite women: Morgane Charre (FRA) 29:17.262, 1; Isabeau Courdurier (FRA) at 23.140, 2; Ella Conolly (GBR) at 25.852, 3. Also: Rae Morrison (NZL) at 1:48.318, 7; George Swift (NZL, Yet Fox) at 3.20.720, 15; Louise Kelly at 9:10.755, 28.
Points: Courdurier 1844, 1; Harriet Harnden (GBR) 1693, 2; Morgane Charre (FRA) 1524, 3. Also: Morrison 995, 7; Swift 673, 14; Kelly 150, 31.
Under 21 Men: Adam Maxa (CZE) 26:44.975, 1; JT Fisher (USA) at 14.612, 2; Bailey Christie (AUS) at 17.605, 3. Also NZers: Joe Millington (Yeti Fox) at 1:10.305, 11; Harry Kneebone at 1:18.421, 17; Matthew Fairbrother at 2:04.727, 29.
Under-21 Women: Winni Goldsbury (NZL), 1; Simone Kuchynkova (SVK) at 50.765, 2; Lily Boucher (CAN) at 1:19.748, 3. Also: Xanthe Robb dnf.
Points: Kuchynkova 705, 1; Goldsbury 495, 2; Lily Planquart (FRA) 490, 3. Also Robb 129, 8.