Day two of the Afxentia Bike Race produced a change in the lead in both the men's and women's classifications. The 52 kilometers to be completed should provide information for the first time about which of the drivers has the fittest legs, even over a comparatively long distance. In the men's category, Jan Skarnitzl started the second day in good spirits. After catching the two breakaways, Fabian Giger and Ondrej Cink, with a group of four, the fast Czech suffered a defect in the rear wheel and had to end the race early and had to watch helplessly as the fight for his lead was made. The victory should be decided between Giger and Cink. Both pulled away from the rest of the field on the last climb of the day and fought doggedly for the day's win. However, Cink was left behind and so Fabian Giger secured victory with a lead of almost twelve seconds and also took over the overall ranking.
“Today the feeling was good and the result was too. I felt great the whole time, especially on the climbs. Jan Skarnitzl was also very strong, it’s a shame he had a mechanical. For me, it’s fantastic to have such a start to the season ,” explained Giger.
Behind Cink, his teammate Julian Schelb managed to overtake Florian Vogel and secure third place. "On the final climb, it was clear that Giger and Cink would be the strongest. I tried to ride at my own pace. I think I did everything right today ," commented the 21-year-old Schelb. Italian Marco Fontana finished the race in fifth place despite a crash.
In the women's race, it was the top three from day one who set the pace from the start. After just a few kilometers, the trio of Adelheid Morath, Annika Langvad and Jolanda Neff were able to distance themselves from the field. Neff, who is known as a downhill specialist, used her strength on the first downhill and set herself decisively ahead of her two closest opponents. Thus, the women's classification was already decided after almost half of the race distance and Neff took over the overall classification with her day's victory.
“I felt really good today. The downhill was really cool,” said a grinning Jolanda Neff after crossing the finish line with a 2:30 minute lead. The battle for second and third place became exciting again on the final climb. Morath steadily closed the gap on the Dane Langvad, but couldn't quite overtake her and finished third. Sabine Spitz missed her early attack and finished fourth. “There was some confusion with the juniors and I couldn't keep up. From that point on, I was on my own. But I'm happy with how I felt,” said Spitz.
result men
1. Fabian Giger (Giant Pro XC) 2:01:16
2. Ondrej Cink (Multivan Merida) +11.927
3. Julian Schelb (Multivan Merida) +20.662
4. Florian Vogel (Scott Odlo) +21.748
5. Marco Fontana (Cannondale) +30.350
result women
1. Jolanda Neff (Giant Pro XC) 2:13:39
2. Annika Langvad (Specialized Racing XC) +2:30.76
3. Adelheid Morath (Haibike Pro) +2:53.243
4. Sabine Spitz (Haibike Pro) +6:32.878
5. Tereza Hurikova (CZ National Team) +7:25.983
Appreciation men
1. Fabian Giger (Ginat Pro XC) 2:15:20.798
2. Ondrej Cink (Multivan Merida) +10.586
3. Florian Vogel (Scott Odlo) +17.858
4. Julian Schelb (Multivan Merida) +21.053
5. Marco Fontana (Cannondale) +37.942
Appreciation women
1. Jolanda Neff (Giant Pro XC) 2:29:03.329
2. Annika Langvad (Specialized Racing XC) +2:32.293
3. Adelheid Morath (Haibike Pro) +2:41.797
4. Sabine Spitz (Haibike Pro) +7:02.677
5. Blaza Klemencic (Feenstra Felt Kenda) +7:56.406