CAPE TOWN - South Africa's mountain bike legend Greg Minnaar won his fourth world championship title at the UCI World Downhill Championship in Val di Sole, Italy, on Sunday.
Pietermaritzburg-born Minnaar produced a gutsy ride on a challenging course - which saw many riders crash - to finish in a time of 3:28.963. He finished ahead of France’s Benoit Coulanges, while Australia’s Troy Brosnan was third.
An emotional Minnaar won his first title in 2003, before going back-to-back in 2012 and 2013. This title will be even more sweet as he turns 40 years old later this year.
“I just started crying on the hot seat because it was incredible,” Minnaar said after the race.
“There was a lot of pressure on myself to get one here. It felt like everything was going well, but to put it together in that final run was super.”
2021 UCI MTB Men Elite Downhill World Champion!@GregMinnaar get back on that top step 🙌![CDATA[]]>🏼#ValdiSole2021 pic.twitter.com/YQmgy0fYTP
— UCI MTB (@UCI_MTB) August 29, 2021
In the women's race, France's Myriam Nicole took gold with a time of 4:06.243 seconds with compatriot Marine Cabirou coming second and Switzerland's Camille Balanche in third.
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