Les Gets en ébullition ! La station haut-savoyarde a vibré au rythme d’une manche de Coupe du Monde de descente (DHI) d’une intensité rare. Dans des conditions particulièrement boueuses, les meilleurs riders mondiaux ont livré un combat total contre le chrono, la pente… et la météo. Au terme d’une journée à suspense, l’Irlandais Ronan Dunne et la Canadienne Gracey Hemstreet ont triomphé dans les catégories élite, tandis que les Français Max Alran et Cassandre Peizerat ont brillé chez les juniors.
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00:30You really pulled it back at the end there. It looked brutal and everyone was really tired towards the end, but how did you just hold on to that?
00:43I felt super slow up top, so I was like, I'd rather just crash and go in as hard as I can rather than bring it back a bit. So, yeah, I was paid off, I guess.
00:54Yeah, it really did. And with those jumps at the bottom as well, really needing that speed, it must have been really brutal just to keep that speed up there.
01:00Yeah, it was really tough. I was like, going to go for the jumps, I was like, no, I'm probably faster sprinting in the B-line than casing them. So, yeah, that's what I did.
01:10Congratulations.
01:11Yeah, thank you.
01:11Maureen, back on the podium after a really tough season with that crash that you had and the injury. How are you feeling after that?
01:21I'm so happy. I just can't believe it. It's just incredible for me to get the second place today. I fight all weekend. After the Q1 yesterday, I talked with the team and I said, oh, I don't want to go for Q2.
01:32I have so much pain on my body and I don't feel good. I just want to rest. And they tell me, oh, if you don't go, for sure you will regret it. And I give a go and I quality and I did a good place in Q2.
01:46And finally, I get the second place. So I just kind of said thank you to the team to push me. And yeah, I just can't believe it today.
01:53And how important is that team support, not just with, you know, forcing you for Q2, but also with the support after the crash and what they've helped you with?
02:02Of course, it's super important to have the team and all my family who support me everywhere, every time. So yeah, it's just so important to have these people behind me because sometimes you don't feel good in the heat and you just want to give up and they push you and they keep you motivated.
02:17And that's the most important. So it's also a team win today.
02:20Amazing. We're happy you're back in racing and on the podium. Congratulations.
02:24Thank you so much.
02:26Amazing podium position after your crash earlier in the year. How are you feeling from that?
02:30Well, I'm very happy. It's not easy to get back to the pain.
02:34Yesterday, after Q1, I tried to get back to Q2. I had a lot of pain in my body.
02:39So I thought, is that I'm going to go back? I'm not going to go back.
02:41But in order to discuss with the team, they told me that if I didn't go, I'm going to regret it.
02:46And in the end, they were right. Because today, I couldn't dream better than a podium.
02:50It's just incredible for a reprieve. I'm really happy.
02:53Thank you.
02:53Vali, a brutal course out there. A really tough one.
02:58And we could just see that towards the end, the time went the other way, unfortunately.
03:02Yeah, I mean, nothing to add.
03:05I mean, the summer break could have been not any worse with the team things happening.
03:11And just trying to not get carried away too much and just focus on the racing.
03:17And I thought, now I got it. Like, being back on the Q1, P1, and get a bit more like my old self.
03:22But it just doesn't work out. And I don't know why.
03:24So, yeah. World Champs next week.
03:28So, yeah. I have nothing to add.
03:31Yeah, and we still see, you know, you're on the podium when this is all happening for you.
03:37You've obviously got very strong mental capacity as well.
03:40Well, I mean, I'm trying. I brought my friends over to feel a bit more like home.
03:44And they're giving 110%.
03:47And I'm just the only one lacking a little bit.
03:50So, sorry. I just hope they're here for me because they support me.
03:55And I just want to have a good time with them together.
03:58And we still think you're amazing. Congratulations.
04:00Thank you so much.
04:01Well, you're a really tough course out there. How did you find it?
04:05Yeah, it was mega schwierig to fahren.
04:08Mental, so, on jeden Fall, it's not so easy for us.
04:10Now, with the news in the summer break, it's not easy for us.
04:14And, yeah, I thought, I feel like I'm feeling like that before.
04:17I had a good quality and then, in the race, I just hit everything down below.
04:21And, yeah, it's really bad for me, because I don't know why it's not so good.
04:27Thank you.
04:28Ronan done. That was unbelievable.
04:30And we can feel the crowd say you've knocked a French winner off the podium and off the win as well.
04:35How does that feel?
04:36Words can't describe how this feels.
04:39It's been such a rough season, to be honest.
04:42And all I've been thinking about for the past weeks was doing well at this race and not to show everyone I can still win a race, even though it's been over a year.
04:52And I, like, I have no words.
04:56The crowd is unbelievable.
04:57I just want to be out there with a lot of them.
04:59Yeah, I'm so happy.
05:01I can't believe it.
05:02And you had to miss Andorra.
05:03How do you come back from something like that and to be able to do this in Leger, the biggest, probably, World Cup that you can win?
05:10Yeah, I just try and have a, I go by the motto, helicopter or win or helicopter or podium.
05:16And I lived up to the name in the Tuile, went home in a helicopter.
05:22And, yeah, here we took the win.
05:24So, yeah, just trying to keep that motto, all gas.
05:28And, yeah, it was, yeah, just happy.
05:32You're the first Frenchman, non-Frenchman, sorry, to win a World Cup in Leger since 2002 when Steve Peet did it.
05:38So these crowds are all yours today.
05:40Yeah, like, I'm sure these boys have wanted a Frenchman to win, but hopefully an Irishman can do the, can settle.
05:47There's a huge Irish crowd here as well.
05:49And, yeah, I love this crowd so much.
05:52The winning Leger has always been a dream.
05:54It was one of my first races ever as a junior.
05:56And, yeah, like, look at that crowd.
05:58It's unbelievable.
05:59So to win here is an absolute dream.
06:02Congrats.
06:02Soak it all up.
06:03Thank you.
06:06Martin May is incredible there on the podium.
06:08You've got so many Belgian fans here.
06:10How is that feeling right now?
06:12Yeah, I'm feeling incredible, you know.
06:14The start of the season hasn't been easy.
06:16And step by step, we got much better race after race.
06:21And I knew that it was going to rain.
06:24And I knew that the conditions were going to be very tricky.
06:28And I like those conditions.
06:30So, yeah, I was in the start hut.
06:32And I was like, I'm going to give it all.
06:35And that's exactly what I did.
06:37Yeah, and it was incredible out there.
06:38And really sticky conditions, like you say.
06:41How do you keep that cool head?
06:44I knew, you know, practice didn't matter too much.
06:47You know, it was all about that run, the final run.
06:51And I focused a lot on that run.
06:53And I tried to ride, I really tried to ride as smooth as possible,
06:58even though it was some very, very sketchy condition.
07:01But I'm so glad I stay on the bike.
07:04And it's a very good second place here in Leger.
07:06Enjoy the podium and celebrations.
07:08Thanks very much.
07:09Martin, it was a solid run out there from you
07:11and getting on the podium here in Leger.
07:12Yeah, it's crazy.
07:13Yeah, it's crazy.
07:16Non, je savais que ça allait être des conditions difficiles ici au G.
07:21Et je me sentais bien aux entraînements.
07:23Tout s'est bien passé.
07:25Et je savais que ça allait être pour le run de course qu'il fallait tout donner.
07:29C'est ce que j'ai fait.
07:30Je suis resté sur le vélo.
07:31Et je suis super content, évidemment.
07:33Congratulations.
07:34Andres Cobb, there's crazy scenes out there.
07:38You had the front row seat up there on the presentation.
07:41How is that feeling?
07:42It's insane.
07:43To be honest, I'm really happy that I got third and not second.
07:46It was so close between me and Martin
07:48and I got second in the last two years.
07:50I was like, not again.
07:52And I'm so stoked for Ronan.
07:54That run was insane.
07:56Yeah, and you did know that there was time still out there on the run.
08:00You knew that there was time still out there on the run.
08:02Is there anything else you could have done, do you think?
08:05Well, you can always do better.
08:08I feel like my legs were not good, like I said before.
08:11So the bottom section, I could have been way faster.
08:13And obviously less mistakes.
08:15But today was so gnarly.
08:17You can't go with no mistakes.
08:18No, but the podium's incredible here in Le Ché.
08:20And the crowds are incredible too.
08:22Really enjoy it.
08:22Crazy, yeah.
08:23I can't wait to get up there again.
08:24Thank you.
08:25Andreas Kolb, tell us how you're feeling right now.
08:34Ah, it's unbeschreiblich.
08:36Also man, ich hoffe, man versteht mich überhaupt.
08:38Es ist, die Stimmung ist wie, keine Ahnung.
08:41Beim Night Race in Schladmegen ist, na, schlimmer.
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