RESULTS: World Championships Downhill Elite Finals 13

After an eventful week, and an extra day of practice, the stage was set for the ultimate 2024 showdown in gravity racing. The fastest guys and gals in the world were on deck to duke it out for the coveted rainbow stripes, and the weather cooperated to ensure fair conditions for all the racers - fair, but tough! The track was cutting up after a week of riding, and the trademark Andorran dust was back in the game after the rain earlier in the week.

In the elite women's race, top qualifier Myriam Nicole dropped in early due to her current world ranking, and she was able to shave 3 seconds off her qualifying time to lay claim to a lengthy stay in the hotseat. Tahnee Seagrave attacked the top section with aplomb, and was up for a split before fading slightly at the end of the track, slotting into second at the finish line. Last woman to drop, Vali Höll was behind at the top of the track, but the bottom section played to her strengths and she was able to claw back enough time to claim her third elite World Champion title in a row. We would be remiss not to point out that the only woman to get under the 3-minute mark this week was double junior World Champ Erice van Leuven...even though the course conditions may have been slightly easier when the juniors rode it a couple of days ago, it's still remarkable and we can't wait to see Erice mix it up with the elites next year.

In the elite men's category, "guest DH rider" Martin Maes dropped in early and as he has done so many times before, he put together a great run to book himself a lengthy sojourn in the hotseat. His 2m41 would have placed him second in qualifying, so now the question was just how many of the top riders had not shown their cards yet. Austin Dooley struck the first blow for #USDH as he shaved 0.7 seconds off Martin's time to take over the lead. His joy would be short-lived however, as speedy Spaniard Angel Suarez promptly opened up a one second gap on Austin's time, three tenths of a second off Loic Bruni's winning qualifying run. Game on! It would take until we got into the last 15 to see Angel's time challenged, with Danny Hart showing vintage form through the technical sections at the bottom of the track to score a 2m38 and put down a serious marker. Just one rider later, Amaury was almost one second up through the first splits, but would fade into second place at the line, showing just how fast Danny's last section was. How it would it hold up to the remainder of the field? Ronan Dunne looked like he was on a flyer, green by 1.2 at the top splits but he too came up short through the last section. Could Benoit Coulanges put one down for the "home team" here in Andorra? Yes! Green all the way to the line, 0.135 up on Danny! Heartbreak for Finn Iles who was on an absolute heater, on the ragged edge, only to come up 0.021 seconds short at the line. With four riders to go, Loris rode a rollercoaster at the splits, up for a bit, then down, only to pull a rabbit out of his hat in the final section to take the lead with three riders left in the start hut. Carrying all the hopes of #USDH on his shoulders, Dak Norton was on his way to another fantastic result when a washout in the final woods put an end to his dreams. Andy Kolb was a bit off the pace, which meant that the gold and the rainbow stripes were sure to go back to France - the only question remaining was, Loris or Loic? 1.8 up at the third split, Super Bruni was on track to add to his collection of gold medals when disaster struck - a washout coming into an off-camber section saw Loic's bid come to an end in a cloud of dust. Congrats to Loris who claimed his first World Champion title to turn around a season that has been a bit off, by his own high standards. Vive la France!

2024 UCI DH World Championships Final Results - Elite Women

2024 UCI DH World Championships Final Results - Elite Men