Cross-Country, Men

Among many other distinctions, Nino Schurter of Switzerland was the defending Olympic champion in the men’s cross-country mountain biking event and an eight-time World Champion. The reigning World Champion, however, was France’s Jordan Sarrou. Mathieu van der Poel of the Netherlands had been the European Champion from 2017 through 2019, while the most recent European Champion, Belgium’s Eli Iserbyt, was not in Tokyo. Van der Poel was an interesting entry, as he was best known for his dominance in cyclo-cross, having won the last three editions of the World Championships (2019-2021), as well as the 2015 title, and had additional successes on the road, yet he elected to concentrate on mountain biking for the Olympics. Also in contention was Mathias Flückiger of Switzerland, the most recent World runner-up. The qualification for the event was completed prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, and thus was not impacted by the delay of the Tokyo Games.

Van der Poel fell early in the race, eliminating him from contention, which allowed outside favorite Tom Pidcock of Great Britain to take control of the race. Pidcock was better known for his success in cyclo-cross, and had sustained a fractured collarbone after being hit by a car earlier in the year, but, after following the two Swiss favorites for a brief period, he launched an early attack and, by lap four, was comfortably in the lead. By the final lap, the first two podium spots had already been decided, with Pidcock finishing 20 seconds ahead of Flückiger.

The thrilling conclusion, therefore, was in the race for bronze, with Schurter attempting to hold on against New Zealand’s Anton Cooper, France’s Victor Koretzky, and Spain’s David Valero. In the end, Valero finished comfortably ahead of Schurter, who had to settle for fourth place, and the rest of the pack. A 2016 Olympian, Valero had few notable results prior to Tokyo and was somewhat of a surprise as bronze medallist.