The penultimate day of the Afxentia Bike Race proved to be another successful one for the Giant Pro XC team. After Fabian Giger and Jolanda Neff took over the overall standings on Friday, both secured victories on the third day.
Although the winners were the same, the standings were different compared to the previous day. After a nine-man group broke away from the peloton in the men's race, an eight-kilometer singletrack climb caused another split. Jan Skarnitzl, as on the two previous days, was in top form. Together with Fabian Giger, Ondrej Cink, and Emil Lindgren, he formed the new leading group. With just under ten kilometers to go, Giger seized his opportunity on another climb and opened up a gap. The Swede Emil Lindgren couldn't keep up the high pace, but still managed to overtake Ondrej Cink and secure second place. Jan Skarnitzl, who had already suffered a mechanical on day two, was plagued by gear shifting problems and couldn't maintain the pace. He finished fourth. “I struggled to keep up, but on the singletrack climb things suddenly improved and I was able to overtake one after the other. In any case, I'm satisfied ,” commented Julian Schelb on his fifth place today.
“Skarnitzl was very strong again and set a great pace on the singletrack climb. I was able to attack on the short climb and win again. Everything went perfectly today, it was cool and a lot of fun,” said the repeat winner, Fabian Giger, after his second stage victory.
Jolanda Neff once again demonstrated her downhill prowess. After losing ground in the opening kilometers, she used the descent to the Mantra tou Kampiou picnic area to her advantage and take the lead. "I knew Jolanda would overtake me. I tried to get down safely. I'm not in a position to keep up with Jolanda, and I couldn't really push her on the subsequent winding gravel road ," explained Morath.
While Neff, much like her teammate Giger, celebrated her second stage win, Annika Langvad finished second, 1:29 minutes behind. "I had a lot of fun and it was really cool. Let's see what happens tomorrow, but I hope I can defend the lead. I had a very good winter, but before the first race you never really know how you're feeling. I'm happy that everything feels so good," said Neff. Adelheid Morath completed the podium on day three, followed by Sabine Spitz.
result men
1. Fabian Giger (Giant Pro XC) 1:34:12.891
2. Emil Lindgren (Giant Pro XC) +7.791
3. Ondrej Cink (Multivan Merida) +39.246
4. Jan Skarnitzl (Sram Rubena Trek) +48.081
5. Julian Schelb (Multivan-Merida) +2:11.470
result women
1. Jolanda Neff (Giant Pro XC) 1:48:28.580
2. Annika Langvad (Specialized Racing XC) +1:29.713
3. Adelheid Morath (Haibike Pro) +2:16.177
4. Sabine Spitz (Haibike Pro) +4:45.487
5. Kathrin Stirnemann (Haibike Pro) +5:46.279
Rating men
1. Fabian Giger (Giant Pro XC) 3:49:33.689
2. Ondrej Cink (Multivan Merida) +49.832
3. Florian Vogel (Scott Odlo) +2:29.328
4. Julian Schelb (Multivan-Merida) +2:32.169
5. Jan Skarnitzl (Sram Rubena Trek) +2:35.758
Appreciation women
1. Jolanda Neff (Giant Pro XC) 4:17:31.909
2. Annika Langvad (Specialized Racing XC) +4:02.006
3. Adelheid Morath (Haibike Pro) +4:57.974
4. Sabine Spitz (Haibike Pro) +11:48.164
5. Blaza Klemencic (Feenstra Felt Kenda) +14:06.225