The Catalan took home the World Championship Vertical Race title for the fourth time. The Swiss Ladies picked up silver thanks to Jennifer Fiechter and bronze for Victoria Kreuzer.
What a show! The large crowds gathered along the length of the course witnessed the superb victory of Kilian Jornet beneath clear blue skies. The Catalan devoured the 847 vertical metres from Médières to Les Ruinettes in 39’26”. In second place, Germany’s Anton Palzer followed closely, only 37 seconds behind. Italian Lorenzo Holzknecht took bronze. Werner Marti from the Swiss CAS Team, suffering from a downturn halfway through the race, ended up in 4th place. Spain’s Marc Pinsach took 5th. Valaisan Yannick Ecoeur finished 16th. Martin Anthamatten who finished 2nd in 2013, was not on topo form and fell to 23rd. Andreas Steindl, 25th and Steven Girard, 26th fulfilled expectations. For the ‘espoirs’ category, Fribourgeois Baptiste Spicher, 9th and Tessinois Luca Morelli, 13th won’t be disappointed with their results. Valaisan Sébastien Caloz finished 15th, a reasonable result for his first appearance at this level.
Kreuzer takes bronze
Victoria Kreuzer took home a fantastic bronze medal. “I had two good performances in the World Cup in January,” revealed the Haut-Valaisanne. “I was really pleased with my performance today. Above all I’m delighted to see so many spectators. That’s hugely supportive. It was fantastic.” For the ladies, the anticipated battle between Maude Mathys and Laetitia Roux never transpired. Instead it was Spain’s Laura Orgué who stole the show. The cross-country specialist has taken part in three Olympic Games – 2006, 2010 and 2014. She finished in 45’47”, beating France’s Laetitia Roux by 20 seconds. Victoria Kreuzer earned a well-deserved third place. Maude Mathys, in 6th, was recovering from illness. In bed with a temperature of 39 on Wednesday, this wasn’t her best day. Jennifer Fiechter, 11th, ended up in bronze position in the espoir category. The Vaudoise, from Leysin, said: “It’s a great piste. It’s long and the final part is really steep. I’m happy with my performance. Now I need to concentrate on the individual race.” In the ‘espoirs’ category, Eugenie Tornay from the Valais came in in 7th place and Séverine Pharisa finished in 9th place. They have gained a lot of important experience for coming seasons.
Vertical Race Senior/Espoir