The two-week campaign is based in and around Valise in Switzerland for the championships comprising several MTB disciplines including downhill, enduro, cross-country, marathon and pump.
A single key stage in Aletsch was brought forward, with the remaining stages to be run today.
Leading the Kiwis in the enduro competition was Canterbury rider Charles Murray, who was third-fastest in the stage, 4sec down on leader and World Cup champion Slawomir Lukasik (Poland).
It was not such good news for Alexandra junior rider Cooper Millwood. Fresh from finishing runner-up in the UCI World Series in enduro, Millwood crashed on the stage.
He made it to the end, 23sec down on leader and world series champion Melvin Almueis, of France, and may not be able to start on the second day.
Nelson’s George Swift was second in the women’s E-Enduro competition.
The enduro riders start at 1050m altitude with six stages in all, taking in over 3000m of descents and over 20km of liaison between stages.
Meanwhile, Taupo’s Sammie Maxwell worked hard for a podium placing to maintain her overall lead after round seven of the UCI MTB cross-country world series in France.
Maxwell finished third behind Sweden’s Jenny Rissveds and Swiss star Alessandra Keller at Les Gets in the Haute Savoie region.
It was the seventh straight podium finish for Maxwell comprising two wins, three second placings and two third placings. She is now 435 points clear of Rissveds in the overall standings with three rounds remaining.
The rest of the New Zealand team were not competitive in Les Gets, with Sam Gaze and Anton Cooper two laps down in the elite men. Taupo’s Coen Nichol was well down in the under-23 men, with Ethan Rose not finishing, while Christchurch’s Amelie Mackay was one lap down in junior women.
— Allied Media
