Jackson Goldstone’s run through Saturday’s downhill World Cup in Les Gets was anything but smooth. The reigning overall leader crashed twice. First in Q1 and again during the finals. He ended up 16th fastest on a course that punished even the most seasoned riders.
Yet, remarkably, he maintains a wafer-thin 25-point cushion over rival Loïc Bruni in the overall standings. That makes his hold on the green leader’s jersey a testament to the consistency he’s shown across the season. The next challenger, Loris Vergier, sits a distant 448 points back.
“It was rowdy the whole way down and I couldn’t even stay on the bike,” Goldstone admitted. “But somehow I still clung onto the green jersey. We’ve just got to go full beans from here and try to beat Loïc.”
Mud, crowds and a French mayhem
Les Gets delivered classic Les Gets conditions; heavy rain early in the day turned the track into a greasy slog. Roots, steep hits and tight technical lines made precision a rarity.
Troy Brosnan, carved an early benchmark. Andreas Kolb pushed past him, only to be edged out by Martin Maes in the final heats. But it was Ronan Dunne who stole the day, following a flawless run to claim victory in this muddied affair.
Canadians hold their ground
Despite Goldstone’s high-profile crashes, he still holds his overall title. And with Gracey Hemstreet’s win in Les Gets, she got a little closer to the overall leader Vali Holl; Holl has only 59 more points than Hemstreet. This should all make for an exciting final three events.
What’s next?
For now, all eyes turn to the world championships. Happening September 7th in Champery, Switzerland the battle for the rainbow jersey will no doubt be a good one. Rumours are we’ll be able to watch the worlds on Flobikes, but that has yet to be verified. If that doesn’t work the UCI YouTube channel is claiming they’ll broadcast the races, but it will be geo-blocked.
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