Jesse Melamed secured his first Enduro World Series title on Sunday in a muddy battle through Loudenvielle, France. After eight races across Europe and North America, the Whistler local landed an astounding six podium finishes.
Emmy Lan was even more dominant in the under-21 women’s category, winning every EWS round she entered. The Vancouver Island racer landed five victories in five race starts to take the 2022 title. Lan missed three rounds in North America due to injury.
All in, four Canadians landed on the series podium after the 2022 Enduro World Series, more than any other country. It’s a huge moment for racing in Canada and, with three of those podiums in the under-21 category, a great sign of what’s to come in the future.
Melamed’s coronation
For Jesse Melamed, the 2022 title is a long time coming. The Rocky Mountain Race Face rider has a long list of wins and EWS podiums to his name already, but the series title was one result missing from his trophy case. With several wins, including at home in Whistler, Melamed cemented his position among the greats of enduro racing.
Canadians, perhaps buoyed by Melamed’s results, had a fantastic year across the category. Rhys Verner (Forbidden Synthesis) put in an impressive seventh place overall. Remi Gauvin (Rocky Mountain Race Face) finished 11th overall, including a third place in Whistler behind Melamed. Jack Menzies (We Are One) rocketed up the pro men’s standings to take 16th. McKay Vezina landed 24th for Giant Factory Off-Road Team, Evan Wall 35th for Devinci Global Racing and Carter Krasny 38th overall.
Melamed’s series title was the outcome of a season-long battle with Richie Rude (Yeti-Fox). Martin Maes (GT) quietly moved into third while 2021’s winner, Jack Moir (Canyon Cllctv), came on strong at the end of the year to finish fourth overall.
Emmy Lan takes EWS by storm
The most dominant performance in the 2022 Enduro World Series, though, came from Norco Factory Racing’s Emmy Lan. The Vancouver Island local won every round she lined up for. Only an injury, which sidelined Lan in Whistler, Sugarloaf and Burke, could slow the Canadian down. With five wins in five starts, Lan landed the under-21 women’s title ahead of Italys Sophie Riva.
With consistent results all year, Lily Boucher added a fifth place in the under-21 women’s standings to Canada’s success this year.
Under-21 men on the move
While Lan dominated the u21 women’s category, Canada’s success in the u21…
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