Team USA fielded 25 athletes across five races over the weekend at the 2019 UCI Cyclocross World Championships in Bogense, Denmark.
Team USA walked away with seven athletes in the top 20 and three top 10 performances in the Elite and U23 Women’s races.
Saturday’s races
On Saturday, Kaitie Keough (Cannondale p/b Cyclocrossworld) took the spotlight for Team USA. Keough spent the second half of the race battling with Swiss rider and Mountain Bike Worlds Silver Medalist Jolanda Neff for sixth.
After being overtaken in the last half lap, Keough ended the race and the season in seventh place. Rebecca Fahringer (Kona Maxxis Shimano CX) also had a career best in the Elite Women’s race coming from a fourth row starting position to fight her way into 16th place.
In the Junior Men’s race, 2018 National Champion, Alex Morton (Cannondale p/b Cyclocrossworld.com) finished 18th.
Continental Champion Gage Hecht (Alpha Bicycle Co/Groove Subaru) was the top U.S. finisher for the U23 Men, coming in 12th place while National Champion, Spencer Petrov (Cannondale p/b Cyclocrossworld.com), fought his way back from a slow start to end the race in 16th.
Sunday’s races
Sunday began with the U23 Women’s race where with two laps to go, Clara Honsinger (Team S&M Cyclocross) led teammate Katie Clouse (Alpha Bicycle Co/Groove Subaru) in a bridge to the leaders, ultimately putting Junior racer Clouse in position to take seventh place while National Champion Honsinger secured 10th place.
Maddie Munro (Boulder Junior Cycling) the youngest U.S. rider in the combined team of Junior and U23 women, placed a respectable 25th in her first-ever World Championships.
In the Elite Men’s race, Continental Champion, Curtis White (Cannondale p/b Cyclocrossworld), fought a battle throughout the grueling 12-lap race in a group of six riders. White ended the race and his first Elite World Championships in 21st place.
Pro-CX Calendar Champion Kerry Werner (Kona Maxxis Shimano CX) placed 31st, followed by National Champion Stephen Hyde (Cannondale p/b Cyclocrossworld) in 32nd.
Future of U.S. CX
“I’m extremely impressed by the effort everyone put in this weekend,” said Jesse Anthony, Cyclocross Manager for USA Cycling. “We saw gritty performances from all of our riders, and the level of intensity was inspiring. There is so much potential across this group of riders and I am committed to helping them continue improving.”
Scott Schnitzspahn, VP of Elite Athletics for USA Cycling said he’s excited about the future of U.S. cyclocross.
“With our increased resources and staff, we are able to get more riders into the development pipeline and provide more support as they progress in the sport,” Schnitzspahn said. “As shown this weekend, our young riders have immense potential and we look forward to helping them achieve success.”
For more information and full results from the 2019 UCI Cyclo-Cross World Championships visit: https://www.uci.org/cyclo-cross/events/uci-cyclo-cross-world-championships.
Content provided by USA Cycling.