Day 1 of the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships in Leogang 2020: The first World Championship medals will be decided in the relay race at 12.30 pm. The top favourites for the opening competition of the second World Championships in Saalfelden Leogang since 2012 include the teams from Switzerland and France. The Swiss have secured the titles at the last three World Championships, while France won between 2014 and 2017. However, some of the big names are missing from the start list. In the afternoon, the official world champions in e-mountain biking will be crowned for the second time in history. The e-MTB races will take place on the 4.3-kilometre, slightly adapted cross-country course at the foot of the Leogang Bike Park. The UCI regulations stipulate that the motor support of the pedelecs must end at a maximum of 25 km/h and the rated power must not exceed 250 watts. In addition, recharging or changing the battery during the race is prohibited. The men's starting list in particular promises an exciting battle for the top places.
For example, Julien Absalon, cyclocross legend Sven Nys, last year's world champion Alan Hatherly from South Africa and the German E-MTB champion Jochen Käß will be at the start. But downhill-orientated e-specialists such as Marco Fontana and Gusti Wildhaber from the Cube Action Team will also be in the mix. Specialized in particular seems to be gunning for the World Championship title once again: In addition to Hatherly, the young XC racers Simon Andreassen (DEN) and Tom Pidcock (GBR) will also be riding the Levo.
The women's starting list is manageable with 14 riders. They include the Swiss world champion Nathalie Schneitter and Sofia Wiedenroth from the Cube Action Team.
Unfortunately, there is no live stream of the races, but you can follow the live timing and results of the races here: www.tissottiming.com/2020/mtbwch/en/uci
