Tom Pidcock (Great Britain) overcame a puncture to win gold in the men’s Olympic MTB race in Paris today after a thrilling two-man battle with France’s Victor Koretzky.
Although Koretzky led the race for much of the race, Pidcock punctured on lap four and was just over 35 seconds behind his French rival. Although Pidcock was fortunate to puncture close to the pits, his wheel change could have been quicker.
However, the Briton gradually caught up with the lone leader, with South African Alan Hatherly trailing behind. Although Pidcock attacked several times, Koretzky seemed to have him under control, even overtaking Pidcock towards the end of the race.
However, the two rode together into the final and nearly crashed when Pidcock took a better line in a forest section just before the finish. The two riders collided with each other, with Koretzky losing momentum and falling back as Pidcock raced to victory, much to the chagrin of the home crowd.
“After the puncture I ran towards Koretzky,” said Pidcock. “I knew how fast he was on the last lap. Racing is racing, that’s what I did. It’s a shame the French booed. It’s a shame for Viktor, but it’s the Olympics, you have to go for it.”
A fan video below shows the moment Koretzky was pulling away from Pidcock in the closing stages of the race but made a major mistake, with his front wheel leaving the track and coming into contact with a tree.
Although that also hampered Koretzky’s efforts, Pidcock was forced into a long fightback after losing significant time with his puncture and was a deserved winner.
Pidcock took gold by nine seconds, beating a very disappointed Koretzky, with Hartley taking bronze 11 seconds behind. It was Pidcock’s second Olympic MTB gold, having also won the title three years ago in Tokyo.
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That c’est cruel for Victor Koretzky!!
The Frenchman leans towards cross-country mountain biking after contact with Pidcock in the final metres of the race…
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