Kate Courtney takes XCC, XCO titles at Pan American Championships in Brazil
Kelsey Urban rides to impressive second in XCO and third in XCC.
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Kate Courtney is bringing two gold medals back to the US this week after winning the short-track and XCO races at the Pan American Cross-Country Mountain Bike Championships in Brazil last weekend.
Those gold medals will also serve as precious qualification points for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
On Friday, Courtney won a fast and tactical XCC race.
“It was very interesting what happened today; the rain really made the track very hard compared to previous days,” she said. “Also, with a flatter race without so many steep climbs, the pack stayed close for a long time, but in the end, I saw an opportunity to break away and move forward for the victory.”
It was a great day for Team USA on the short track, with Kelsey Urban sharing the podium with Courtney in third and U23 rider Sofia Waite finishing eighth in the elite race.
A win in the short track means a front row spot on the start line in the XCO, so Courtney and Urban were both well-positioned at the start of Sunday’s race. The Americans finished 1-2, with Brazilian Raiza Goulao Henrique in third.
Sofia Waite of Waite Endurance finished third in the U23 XCO race.
Full results from the 2023 Pan American cross-country mountain bike championships here.