After five long months and eight races on three continents, Austria’s Lisi Osl dominated her home race as she claimed the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup on Saturday.
Although she said she felt the burden of expectation coming into the race, she showed no sign of weakness as she led from start to finish on her way to her third in of the season. “There was so much pressure,” she said. “Coming to Austria in the leaders jersey and hold onto it was not easy.
Osl came into the final round with a 65-point lead over Lene Byberg with Canada’s Catharine Pendrel the only other rider with a mathematical chance of taking the title. But her thoughts were on holding on to third place ahead of the defending world champion Irina Kalentieva.
Dom Daher/Red Bull Photofiles
Just 48 seconds separated second place from fifth. Byberg passed Pendrel on the final lap to ensure the top three in the race were also the top three in the championship.
"I have no words," said Osl. "It has been a fantastic season, and I have surprised myself this year.
"My tactic today was just to give it my best. My legs felt bad before the start, so I just decided to go out hard and see what would happen.”
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