Odds and Sods: X2O Calendar, Unbound Preview and More Olympic MTB Notes
To put a button on our Olympic qualifying discussion, here are the final nations' rankings for men and women. To recap, nations 1-8 earn two starting spots for the Olympic MTB race and nations 9-19 earn one spot. Nations below 19 need to meet one of the other qualification criteria or hope for a Universality pick.
In the men’s rankings, Nino Schurter and Marcel Guerrini helped Switzerland claim the top spot over France. There is no significance other than bragging rights here. The U.S. finished fifth, securing two spots for the Olympics. Those spots will go to Riley Amos and most certainly Christopher Blevins on a discretionary pick. Hopefully, we will know for sure on June 7, the final nomination date in USA Cycling’s selection document.
The big drama for the week was the battle for eighth between Great Britain, Brazil and Denmark. After Simon Andreassen went on a Brazilian heater, Denmark leapfrogged Brazil and GB to take the eighth spot. In Nove Mesto, Tom Pidcock showed up to take it back. On the strength of Pidcock’s XCO win and Charlie Aldridge’s fourth-place finish, GB reclaimed eighth place and paved the way for Aldridge to join Pidcock in Paris.
For the women, not much changed. The U.S. locked down third, the Swiss women held on to first despite Pauline Ferrand-Prevot’s dominating performance, and South Africa held off Slovenia to keep the all-important 19th place.
A quick correction from my last update, where I said that Gunnar and Isabella Holmgren were the only Canadians who met the qualification criteria. Emily Johnston and Carter Woods had U23 podium finishes in a European World Cup last year and, therefore, are in the selection pool. Gunnar Holmgren’s top 12 finish in the elite XCO at Nove Mesto1 gives him the edge over Woods, who won the Val di Sole U23 round in 20232. The committee will have to compare results for Johnston and Isabella Holmgren. The committee will give the edge to Holmgren, who won the Nove Mesto U23 race because there is an “in the event of a tie, the athlete with the best result will be given priority” clause. Johnston finished fourth in that race. Her next best results are a second and third3.
The Swiss wasted no time announcing their roster for Paris: Nino Schurter, Matthias Flückiger, Alessandra Keller and Jolanda Neff. Smart move by the Swiss. With so many top riders, it was good to end the speculation and debate early.
Unbound Gravel
This Saturday is Unbound Gravel. Say what you want about gravel racing in the U.S., but it is undeniable that Unbound is a big deal. I would go as far as calling it the country’s biggest and possibly only true one-day classic. This year's draw includes several riders with Tour de France experience, including first-time racer Greg Van Avermaet. We also have Baloise Lions standout Joris Niewenhuis toeing the line.
On the latest Groadio podcast, Amanda Nauman and I discuss the course changes for this year, the rule changes, and the favorites. It’s a good conversation. Please give it a listen.
X20 Calendar
Finally, the X20 Badkamers Trofee released its calendar filling in more of the picture for the upcoming cyclocross season. The series also announced that X20 extended its title sponsorship through the 2027-2028.
CALENDAR X²O BADKAMER TROFEE SEASON 2024-2025:
• Friday, November 1, Koppenbergcross – Oudenaarde
• Sunday, November 10, Rapencross – Lokeren
• Sunday, November 17, Flandriencross – Hamme
• Saturday, December 14, Herentals Crosst – Herentals
• Wednesday, January 1, Grand Prix Sven Nys – Baal
• Friday, January 3, Flemish Duinencross – Koksijde
• Sunday February 9, Krawatencross – Lille
• Sunday February 16, Brussels Universities Cross – Brussels
An elite XCO top 12 in a European World Cup, which Holmgren achieved at Nove Mesto, is a higher ranked qualification criteria than a U23 podium.
Woods also won the Snowshoe U23 World Cup, but Canada has an anti-North American World Cup bias. A very Canadian self-deprecating thing to do, considering Mt. Saint Anne is one of the best World Cups.
Thanks to Michael van den Ham for helping me dial in the results, here. If you only read the email version of this post, my conclusions are more wishy-washy.
Speaking of Unbound also worth noting the gravel World Champion Matej Mohoric is interrupting his TdF prep to come race so the rainbow stripes will be in attendance for the men anyway.