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Houffalize: Ren and Hermida tops at World Cup opener
As the ProTour’s Amstel Gold Race was underway a couple of hours away, mountain-biking’s top pros were starting their own season with the opening World Cup race in Houffalize, Belgium.
Often viewed as the European classic of the World Cup circuit, Houffalize stands as the one race every rider wants to win. This year saw two new faces at the top of the podium, as Jose Hermida (Multivan Merida) overcame mechanical problems and a crash with the lead motorcycle to beat Julien Absalon (Orbea) for the men's title, and China's Chengyuan Ren (China National team) won the first World Cup ever for her country in front of world champion and defending World Cup champion Gunn-Rita Dahle-Flesjaa (Multivan Merida).
This year Houffalize offered up the warmest and driest conditions imaginable. Great billowing clouds of dust meant that the only place to be was at the front of the race. Unfortunately, huge fields - 231 for the men and 125 for the women - also meant that most riders spent a lot of the race choking on dust.
Full Results
Indeed, the UCI had attempted to address the field size issue with a requirement that entrants have 20 UCI points. But as the field sizes attest, there are a lotof riders with 20 UCI points.
An opening half lap began with a steep road climb out of the village which topped 16 percent; this would (it was hoped) thin the field before the race entered the dirt.
Women
In the women's four-and-a-half lap race it was climber Marga Fullana (Spiuk-Tau Ceramica) who went to the front over the first climb. She was marked by Dahle-Flesjaa, Ren and Canadian star Marie-Helene Premont (Rocky Mountain-Haywood). Premont was an unknown quantity, since she had not raced at all this year.
For the first two laps Fullana attacked and Dahle-Flesjaa reeled her in, with Ren content to sit a few seconds back and wait for things to settle down. Sabine Spitz (Ghost international) moved into fourth, but was already a minute down, while Premont dropped back to battle for fifth with two more Chinese riders - Jingjing Wang and Ying Liu.
On the third lap Fullana finally managed to open up a more significant 15-second lead, but it turned out to be in vain, as Dahle-Flesjaa and Ren caught and drop her before the start of the final circuit. Unlike most World Cups of the last few seasons, Dahle-Flesjaa was unable to drop her sole remaining competitor and, in a historic first, Ren came into view first around the last corner to the finish line, with a disappointed Dahle-Flesjaa a couple of meters back.
Ren, who officially speaks no English, was quickly hustled away by her coach, who 'interpreted' for her: "I am very honored to win because Gunn-Rita is a true champion. I know that this is just one victory."
Fullana rolled in for third, with Spitz in fourth, and the final podium spot was taken by another Chinese rider - Wang. Premont took sixth as the top North American finisher, with Pan Am champion Georgia Gould (Luna) managing an impressive ride up from 40th at the start to finish eighth.
"It is not surprising to me that the Chinese riders did so well here because they get better and better every year." commented Dahle-Flesjaa afterwards. "I did my best; I had to fight all day for second place ... second is not too bad at a World Cup, I think."
Premont insisted that she was happy with her ride, and not worried about finishing off the podium. "This is my first race of the season, so I am very happy with how well I did. There is so much snow at home that I have not been able to ride my mountain bike, and my technical skills are not there yet. But I know now that I am not too far back from the leaders, and I will be back up there next time. The speed in the first two laps was just a bit too much for me right now, I was at 110 percent, but it will come by Offenburg (the next World Cup)."
Men
While Dahle-Flesjaa is always a prohibitive favorite in the women's field, the men's race usually has a number of top contenders, led by World Cup and world champion Julien Absalon - sporting the colors of his new Orbea team.
To beat the ever consistent Absalon requires a 'hot' rider, and in Houffalize, Jose Hermida was having a dream day. "I didn't expect to win today, it was the sort of day you always dream of having, and to have it here in Houffalize - I have always dreamed of winning here, so words cannot properly describe it."
Former winner Roel Paulissen looked like he might have the stuff, when he jumped into the lead on the first half lap of the five and a half lap race, but then suffered mechanical problems and spent the rest of the race chasing back to a credible fourth place to salve Belgian pride.
Once Paulissen was passed, three riders rode away from the field - Hermida, Absalon and Fredrik Kessiakoff (Cannondale-Vredestein). By the second lap Hermida was already 30 seconds up on Absalon and 50 ahead of Kessiakoff, who eventually faded to fifth. A lap later and the gap was 45 seconds, and Hermida appeared to be on his way to a crushing victory.
Unfortunately, two successive problems threatened to derail his hopes. First a jammed chain forced him to stop and allowed Absalon to catch up. Then, while leading the French rider on a descent, the lead moto crashed directly in front of him.
"After I caught back up to Julien, we caught the (lead) moto on the downhill and he crashed, like a meter in front of me, so I crashed into him! When I looked at my bike, it was under the moto, so I thought that was it, but the spectators pulled the moto off my bike and it was okay."
"In the final lap I was afraid of Julien, because he is such a good rider, but I could see him having problems in the downhills so I attacked there and was able to keep the gap."
Canada's Geoff Kabush (Maxxis), who has been untouchable in North America, was the top North American, moving up from 55th on the start grid to a strong 12th place by the finish. Other North Americans struggled, with Todd Wells (GT) the best placed U.S. rider in 36th.
"I was moving up all race" explained Kabush "but it definitely wasn't as much as I had hoped for. I didn't make up the time on the hill like I wanted to, and it was hard to get places to pass. I know now that if I start top-10 I can do better and possibly be on the podium.
Houffalize: Men’s Results
1 José Antonio Hermida Ramos (Sp) Multivan Merida Biking Team 2:04:22
2. Julien Absalon (Fra) Orbea at 0:48
3. Christoph Sauser (Sui) Specialized, at 1:48
4. Roel Paulissen (Bel) Cannondale-Vredestein, at 2:15
5. Fredrik Kessiakoff (Swe) Cannondale-Vredestein, at 2:51
6. Nino Schurter (Sui) Swisspower Mtb Team *, at 3:35
7. Jakob Fuglsang (Den) Cannondale-Vredestein *, at 3:42
8. Kashi Leuchs (NZl) Cannondale-Vredestein, at 4:16
9. Jader Zoli (Ita) Ktm International Team, at 4:51
10. Inaki Lejarreta Errasti (Sp) Orbea, at 4:59
Full ResultsWomen
1. Ren Chengyuan (Chn), China * 2:00:23
2. Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjaa (Nor), Multivan Merida, at 0:011
3. Margarita Fullana (Sp), Spiuk-Tau Ceramica 0:15
4. Sabine Spitz (Ger), Ghost International Racin 2:35
5. Jingjing Wang (Chn), China 3:07
6. Marie-Helene Premont (Can), Rocky Mountain Haywood 3:28
7. Ying Liu (Chn), Team Lapierre International * 4:22
8. Georgia Gould (USA), Luna Womens Mtb Team 4:49
9. Katerina Nash (Cze), Luna Womens Mtb Team 6:11
10. Ivonne Kraft (Ger), La Carrera-BTS 6:25
FullResults
