WMTBOC 2015: After the silver, gold to Dallavalle and Tichovska

Better than silver, only the gold! Twenty-four hours after taking the second place in the Middle Distance of the World MTB Orienteering Championships 2015, Luca Dallavalle and Martina Tichovska ran today to the victory in the Sprint, held in Turnov. In the Junior World Championships, Angus Robinson and Veronika Kubinova took the gold.

The program of the second day of competition of the World MTB Orienteering Championships 2015 was dedicated to the Sprint finals. The surroundings of Stadium Ludvík Daněk, at Turnov, were the scenery of intense duels, with the uncertainty about the winners to stay until the last second. In the Men Elite class, the Italian Luca Dallavalle was the fastest, offering to his country a historic gold medal, the first ever in the Italian Mountain Biking Orienteering. Dallavalle already yesterday had threatened the first place, finishing the Middle Distance course with the silver on his chest, a few five seconds after the winner, the Russian Anton Foliforov. Nonconformist and combative, the Italian athlete faced this race with determination, showing the “fury” which makes him a great champion and winning with a time of 20:58.

In a highly contested race - the top ten finishers ended separated by margins of less than one minute -, the Czech Vojtech Stransky reached the second place, having spent 4 seconds more than the winner. The third place went to the current European Champion, the Estonian Lauri Malsroos, with a time of 21:18. With a total of four athletes in the top ten, the Czech Republic was in great prominence today. Sprint World Champion in 2014 and star of the first day of the Championships, Anton Foliforov finished in the 12th place with a time of 22:17. As for the Portuguese, Davide Machado was, once again, our best representative, ending his race in the 35th place, 2:35 from Dallavalle.

Tichovska also makes history

As already mentioned, the history of the women's race is written exactly with the same words of the men's race. A 21:52 record was enough to Martina Tichovska conquer a gold medal also historic, being the first for the Czech Republic in the Women Elite class in thirteen editions of the World Championships. The 55 seconds that separated Tichovska from the Finnish Susanna Laurila are well a demonstration of the supremacy of the Czech athlete, already evidenced at Idanha-a-Nova, last June, when she reached the European title of Sprint, imposing itself the current leader of the IOF World Ranking, the British Emily Benham. The third place was awarded to the Swedish Cecilia Thomasson, with a time of 22:49, while the Finnish Marika Hara, Sprint World Champion in 2014, finished in the 6th place. With a time of 30:11, corresponding to the 43rd place, Ana Filipa Silva was the best Portuguese representative in this course.

In the Junior World Championships, the Australian Angus Robinson took the World Champion title, completing his race in 21:27 against 21:48 of the Swiss Silvan Stettler. With 33 seconds more than Robinson, the Swedish Oskar Sandberg - great winner of the Middle Distance final held yesterday and Sprint World Champion in 2014 - finished third. Afonso Barreiros was the best Portuguese, finishing in the 38th place with a time of 26:24. The women's race confirmed the Czech Veronika Kubinova as the great favorite, who defended here, before her public, the world title won in the previous year in Bialystok, Poland. Recovering from the failure of yesterday's race, where she was disqualified, Kubinova avenged the second place in the European Championship before Lou Denaix, winning with 22:15 time. Denaix repeated the second place of yesterday's Middle Distance course, having spent more 4 seconds than the winner. Also the Russian Daria Mikryukova repeated the climb to the lowest place of the podium, staying at 15 seconds of Kubinova. Finally, as a curiosity note, special mention to the gold medal won by the Australian Angus Robinson, the first ever of an Australian junior athlete in the World Championships. Silvan Stettler also offered to the Swiss's junior male MTB Orienteering its first medal ever in the most important competition of the MTBO international agenda.

Results

M21

1. Luca Dallavalle (Italy) 20:58 (+ 00:00)

2. Vojtech Stránsky (Czech Republic) 21:02 (+ 00:04)

3. Lauri Malsroos (Estonia) 21:18 (+ 00:20)

4. Hans Jorgen Kvale (Norway) 21:23 (+ 00:25)

5. Jussi Laurila (Finland) 21:26 (+ 00:28)

6. Frantisek Bogar (Czech Republic) 21:33 (+ 00:35)

(...)

35. Davide Machado (Portugal) 23:33 (+ 02:35)

43. Daniel Marques (Portugal) 24:21 (+ 03:23)

55. Carlos Simões (Portugal) 24:45 (+ 03:47)

58. João Ferreira (Portugal) 25:02 (+ 04:04)

66. Luis Barreiro (Portugal) 25:46 (+ 04:48)

77. Mario Guterres (Portugal) 27:08 (+ 06:10)

W21

1. Martina Tichovska (Czech Republic) 21:52 (+ 00:00)

2. Susanna Laurila (Finland) 22:47 (+ 00:55)

3. Cecilia Thomasson (Sweden) 22:49 (+ 00:57)

4. Emily Benham (Great Britain) 23:06 (+ 01:14)

5. Gaelle Barlet (France) 23:07 (+ 01:15)

6. Marika Hara (Finland) 23:12 (+ 01:20)

(...)

43. Ana Filipa Silva (Portugal) 30:11 (+ 08:19)

45. Susana Bridges (Portugal) 30:46 (+ 08:54)

51. Tania Covas Costa (Portugal) 33:41 (+ 11:49)

M20

1. Angus Robinson (Australia) 21:27 (+ 00:00)

2. Silvan Stettler (Switzerland) 21:48 (+ 00:21)

3. Oskar Sandberg (Sweden) 22:00 (+ 00:33)

4. Vyacheslav Chernykh (Russia) 22:07 (+ 00:40)

5. Matej Muller (Slovakia) 22:12 (+ 00:45)

6. Vaclav Snuparek (Czech Republic) 22:37 (+ 01:10)

(...)

38. Afonso Barreiros (Portugal) 26:24 (+ 04:57)

43. Paul Roothans (Portugal) 27:04 (+ 05:37)

48. Duarte Lourenço (Portugal) 28:00 (+ 06:33)
57.Diogo Barradas (Portugal) 31:52 (+ 10:25)

André Ramalho (Portugal) mp

 

W20

1. Veronika Kubinova (Czech Republic) 22:15 (+ 0:00)

2. Lou Denaix (France) 22:19 (+ 00:04)

3. Darya Mikryukova (Russia) 22:30 (+ 00:15)

4. Constance Devillers (France) 22:59 (+ 00:44)

5. Doris Kudre (Estonia) 23:29 (+ 01:14)

5. Viktorija Michnovic (Lithuania) 23:29 (+ 01:14)

Complete results and further information at http://www.wmtboc2015.cz/.

Joaquim Margarido