The rest weekend between WTCS Yokohama and WTCS Alghero saw no drop-off in action with great racing taking place around the world. Find out all that happened in the latest edition of the Monday Morning Mix.
World Cup Samarkand
Maxime Hueber-Moosbrugger (FRA) came out on top in Samarkand thanks to a pulverising 10km run split of 30:54 on a tough day in which the only other men to run under 31:45 were the silver and bronze medallists. They were Márton Kropkó (HUN) and Mathis Beaulieu (CAN), who spent the final stages of the run engaged in a gripping duel for 2nd place.
The Canadian had reeled in Kropkó after the Hungarian’s breakaway escape and, on paper, looked the better bet as the faster runner and a World Cup medallist to boot. Yet Kropkó found something deeper to come through in the nick of time. There was no real disappointment for Beaulieu, though. He spent much of 2024 waylaid by injury and changed his training base during a tumultuous year. Now back onto the podium almost a year after winning his maiden medal, it was an emotional return to the top.
A stellar performance saw Diana Isakova (AIN) claim a first World Cup victory. She did not do it the easy way having found herself in a three-woman chase behind the leading trio. A crash for one of her breakaway partners saw her ride over a lap on her own as the leaders pulled clear. But then two of the leaders fell, flipping the script. Isakova could have waited for the run but chanced another attack off the front to catch the lone leader. It did not work out, but luckily her efforts did not detract from her run. She would clock 34:49, the fastest 10km of the field, to win ahead of Lea Coninx (FRA) and Costanza Arpinelli (ITA), each of whom won first World Cup medals of their own. View the full results here.
World Para Cup Samarkand
Men’s race winners:
- PTWC: Thomas Fruehwirth (AUT)
- PTS2: Vasilii Egorov (AIN)
- PTS3: Valentin Hanzer (GER)
- PTS4: Antoine Lamarche Poulain (FRA)
- PTS5: Bence Mocsari (HUN)
- PTVI: Thibaut Rigaudeau (FRA)
There were no real upsets in the men’s events at the World Para Cup in Samarkand as the favourites took gold across the board. Thomas Fruehwirth delivered one of the most dominant showings of the day on his way to gold in the PTWC class while European champion Bence Mocsari led a deeper PTS5 category from start to finish. In the PTS2 event, Vasilii Egorov (AIN) took the win but perhaps the most satisfying medal of the weekend was earned by Jeromius Rooi (NAM).
After making a journey to Uzbekistan long enough to qualify him as an Elizabethan explorer, Rooi encountered mechanical problems with his bike the day before his race, putting his participation at risk. He was left with a race against time to make the start line but it all came together in the end.
Women’s race winners:
- PTS2: Veronika Gabitova (AIN)
- PTS3: Egveniya Koroleva (AIN)
- PTS4: Kübra Dere (TUR)
- PTS5: Irina Grazhdanova (AIN)
- PTVI: Heloise Courvoisier (FRA)
Although the fields were a little smaller in the women’s races at the World Para Cup, there was no drop in quality. The AIN team stepped up with multiple gold medals but the star of the day was Heloise Courvoisier who beat more women than the rest of the female gold medallists combined with her triumph in the PTVI class. View the full results here.
Asia Cup Osaka Castle
Aoba Yasumatsu (JPN) took gold ahead of Bradley Course (AUS) in the men’s race, the Australian athlete taking his second silver medal in a row. In contrast to last week’s Asia Cup in Lianyungang, Course actually found himself watching a daring breakaway from afar and the first half of the race was all about the Japanese duo of Kyotaro Yoshikawa and Koki Yamamoto. The former led the 750m swim in 8:57, putting 8 seconds into the third athlete out of the water. Yoshikawa and Yamamoto then attacked the bike with unbridled adventure. It was Yamamoto’s turn to take the top split (clocking 28:42 for the 20km), but what mattered was the minute-strong lead they carried into T2.
Yoshikawa was the first to buckle but Yamamoto scrapped onwards. Yasumatsu and Course would eventually get their man but he nonetheless held on for a defiant bronze medal. The race winner’s 14:52 run split also made him the only man under 15 minutes, although Course was mightily close with his time of 15:00.
In the women’s race, Manami Hayashi (JPN) made it two Asia Cup wins in a row after logging a field-leading 5km run of 17:37. Hayashi arrived on the back of a 25th place at her WTCS debut in Yokohama and again proved that is already a big fish in a small pond at the Asia Cup level. Charlotte Derbyshire (AUS) and Mako Hiraizumi (JPN) followed in 2nd and 3rd, respectively. View the full results here.
Europe Cup Olsztyn
In the weekend’s other senior sprint distance event, two young Brits ran the show at the business end of the men’s race in Olsztyn as Oliver Conway downed Michael Gar in the 5km run. A fast swim did not break the race up as some of the initial leaders would have hoped, allowing a large main pack to form. From there, Conway and Gar were able to take over, with the former winning by 11 seconds. Only 2 seconds behind Gar was Jonas Osterholt (GER), matching the bronze medal he won at the same race in 2020.
The women’s race played out in similar fashion. A large lead pack remained together throughout the bike, setting up a running race out of T2. Carlotta Missaglia (ITA) proved the quickest runner on the day, the 2024 Italian champion winning by 2 seconds. Right behind her was Sophie Alden (GBR) in what was her first international appearance in over a year following injury. Making the podium on her comeback was therefore a very promising return for the World Cup medallist. Franka Rust (GER) then rounded out the top-3. View the full results here.
Europe Junior Cup Olsztyn
A tight finish handed Thibault Rivier (SUI) the gold medal ahead of Luis Rühl (GER) by only one second in the junior men’s race. As with the senior races, a fast swim threatened to break up the race but a large chunk of the field came back together at the front on the bike. Jakub Suchan (POL) had been in the mix with the leaders on the run but could not match their finish as he settled for 3rd place.
The podium followed an identical nationality order in the women’s event, with Anouk Danna (SUI) defeating Carlotta Bülck (GER) and Hanna Foltyniewicz (POL). One point of difference, however, was the margin of victory; unlike Rivier, Danna won by 33 seconds thanks to a crushing display on the run. View the full results here.