France won the mixed team relay to open up the 2024 UCI Cyclocross World Championships in Tábor with a bang, with junior rider Aubin Sparfel holding off Great Britain’s Cameron Mason in a thrilling final lap and sprint to the line.
Sparfel went into the final lap with a seven-second lead on Mason thanks to a powerful penultimate lap from Hélène Clauzel and despite the Brit’s efforts right to the final moment, he never made up the difference.
Last year’s champions Netherlands were absent after opting to focus on the individual events, meaning runners-up from 2023 Great Britain were coming in with hopes of going one better.
After being the only squad to start with a women’s rider and falling to last on lap one, Great Britain’s seemed to have their tactics perfect with Cat Ferguson and Oscar Amey making up ground in the middle laps. They granted Anna Kay a 20-second lead over Clauzel, but the Frenchwoman’s chase and overtake of the Brit proved to be the decisive moment.
A fast-closing Michael Vanthourenhout took the Belgian team home for third with too much work to do on the final lap to chase down the leading duo.
“It’s just amazing. We would like to win today but now we are World Champions. It’s just incredible,” said France’s Clauzel after the victory.
“It was super stressful but we know Aubin [Sparfel] is super strong and he just won. We are very proud of him,” said France’s U23 men’s rider Martin Groslambert.
The mixed team relay event is contested by six riders: one elite male, one elite female, and two male and two female riders from the under 23 or junior ranks. Each nation can determine their own starting order.
Tábor 2024 is the second edition of the mixed team relay at the World Championships after being raced first in Hoogerheide last year following the 2022 test event in Fayetteville. Last year’s champions and the dominant force in cyclocross, the Netherlands, opted not to field a squad and instead focus on the individual events.
An explosive first lap saw the tactical battle begin with the ten starting nations choosing to lead off with riders from different age groups and genders. The majority led off with their men’s U23 or junior rider, while Great Britain were the only squad to start with a women’s rider, Zoe Bäckstedt.
The lead was swapped throughout lap one by Poland, France and Italy with Filippo Agostinacchio riding strongly for the latter, but it was France who led the way heading into the first changeover after Rémi…
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