Red Bull press release
Good news for all mountain bike fans. Red Bull is going to broadcast the UCI Mountain Bike World Championship 2019 presented by Mercedes-Benz with all races LIVE from Mont-Sainte-Anne (CAN). Next to the regular World Cup races throughout the season, Red Bull TV now also hosts the prestigious highlight of the season – the World Championships. As usual, the complete replay will be available on demand right after the completion of the respective races. The contests on the 31st of August and the 1st of September will be streamed with German, English and Portuguese commentary, with Rob Warner commentating the English stream.
The iconic commentator will be supported by José Antonio Hermida (ESP) during the Cross-Country races on Saturday, 31st of August. The Spanish silver medalist in the Olympic Games 2004 became World Champion in Mont-Sainte-Anne in 2010 and is the ideal co-commentator alongside Rob. The perfectly attuned duo for the Downhill on Sunday, 1st of September, will be Rob and his regular co-commentator Claudio Caluori (SUI).
As if this season’s UCI Mountain Bike World Cup wasn’t already thrilling enough, the world’s elite is going to face off in an all-or-nothing event this weekend: The World Championships in Mont-Sainte-Anne. Taking place in the Canadian bike hotspot for the third time, the event also celebrates its 30th birthday. The Downhill and Cross-Country aces only have one race to achieve fame and glory at the highest level of the sport. ‘La Coupe du Monde DH’ as it’s known, drops a total of 604m / 1,981ft over 2.9km / 1,8 miles. The track has two main themes: when riders are not in the trees it’s brutally, vision-blurringly fast and when in the trees, it’s big impact after big impact. Warp speed skills need to be coupled with pinpoint accuracy and physical strength. The XC track is 4.1km / 2.5miles in length, drops 217m / 712ft and features an average speed of around 18kmph / 12mph. It’s comfortably the most technical track that the top flight of mountain biking visit. Its challenge lies in its severity, with horribly steep and awkward climbs, such as L’Enfer De Sainte Anne, leading directly into savage descents like La Beatrice, which features a maximum gradient of 48 percent.
Who is going to leave Canada with the famous rainbow jersey? Will there be another French downhill party? Is Nino Schurter (SUI) going to become World Champion for the eighth time? Who is going to emerge victorious from the strong field of women’s cross-country?
XCO: Schurter favorite in the men’s competition – no clear favorite among the women
Nino Schurter is an Olympic champion, seven-time World Champion, six-time overall World Cup title holder and has won a total of 32 World Cup races. With two wins this season, Schurter is the top favorite in the men’s competition. The biggest threat to his rainbow jersey would have been Mathieu van der Poel (NED), who is not competing in order to properly prepare for the upcoming Road Bike World Championship. Consequently, the biggest rivals of the Swiss cross-country legend are going to be fellow Swiss rider Mathias Flueckiger, Gerhard Kerschbaumer (ITA) and Henrique Avancini (BRA).
The women’s competition paints a completely different picture. With no less than five riders with reasonable chances to win, a hopefully unpredictable and compelling race lies ahead. Kate Courtney (USA) has won three World Cup races this season but faltered in Val di Sole (ITA) and Lenzerheide (SUI). On the other hand, after a weak race in Vallnord (AND), she came back even stronger and won in Les Gets (FRA). In the final rehearsal in Lenzerheide at the beginning of August, Jenny Rissveds (SWE), Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (FRA) and Anne Terpstra (NED) left behind the strongest impression. The Swedish rider accomplished her second World Cup win in Switzerland and rides a wave of euphoria since her comeback to the big stage. Ferrand-Prévot won in Val di Sole and managed to come back successfully after two surgeries last December, reaching her peak performance right on time. The former World Champion on the road, in cyclocross and on the mountain bike knows how to perform at events of this caliber. Terpstra won in Vallnord and was Rissveds’ biggest competitor for the Lenzerheide trophy. Last but not least is Jolanda Neff (SUI). The Overall World Cup points leader is the most consistent rider with four second places on the Olympic distance. Having started her races with either too much or too little pace, the 26-year-old still lacks a Cross-Country World Cup win in 2019. It’s entirely possible that the Swiss speedster saved the perfect balance for the highlight race of the year.
Watch the UCI Mountain Bike World Championship 2019 in Mont-Sainte-Anne, Canada in English, German and Portuguese from the 31 August – 1 September LIVE and on-demand on Red Bull TV!
DHI: Another French downhill party? Will the comebackers interfere?
The French Downhill performances have been incredible so far. Loic Bruni and Amaury Pierron have each won three races this season, while Marine Cabirou just celebrated her first two victories in the Women’s Elite. They are clearly the ones to beat. But Tracey Hannah (AUS) surely will approach the World Championship differently than her recent World Cup races, during which she put down some safe runs to conserve her lead in the Overall World Cup. With what could be her first World Championship title in mind, the Australian will clearly aim for the win in MSA. Another rising star of this season won’t appear in the start gate in Canada: due to an injured shoulder Nina Hofmann (GER) will not be able to participate. A serious dose of action is added with the return of Myriam Nicole (FRA) and Tahnée Seagrave (GBR). Nicole has had to sit on the sidelines this season due to a broken ankle, but made her return to racing at Crankworx Whistler in which she claimed third place, less than a second behind Hannah. Tahnée Seagrave (GBR) will also make her return to the World Cup circuit in Canada, however, it remains to be seen how the winner of seven World Cup races maintained her form after suffering a significant shoulder injury in Fort William earlier this year.
In the men’s competition defending champion Bruni is looking to win in his fourth World Championship (2015, 2017 and 2018). Amaury Pierron, defending Overall World Cup winner, Val di Sole winner Laurie Greenland (GBR) and Greg Minnaar (RSA) might be the ones who prevent him from doing so. With second place finishes in Leogang and Lenzerheide, record World Cup winner (21 victories) and three-time World Champion Greg Minnaar recently showed that, even at 37 years old, he’s still a threat. Troy Brosnan (AUS), Loris Vergier (FRA) and two-time World Champion (2011 and 2016) Danny Hart (GBR) complete the strong field. Celebrating the return of a legend as well, the men’s competition welcomes back Aaron Gwin (USA). The winner of 20 World Cup races had to pause to recover from several injuries and focused his rehab on the World Championship, where he aims to celebrate his first title.
Thrill and excitement lie ahead. Red Bull TV broadcasts the UCI Mountain Bike World Championship 2019 in Mont-Sainte-Anne LIVE and on-demand, anytime, anywhere on redbull.tv. The LIVE broadcast will start on Saturday, 31 August at 6:00 pm CEST / 12:00 pm local time. More up-to-date information and more action-packed mountain biking content can be found on the Red Bull Bike Channel: redbull.tv/bike.
