Pauline Ferrand-Prévot quickly got back in the saddle.
Her disappointing 10th place at the Tokyo Olympics digested, the Frenchwoman bounced back at the European Cross-Country Mountain Bike Championships while retaining her crown.
This Sunday, in Novi Sad (Serbia).
At 29, she won the second continental title of her career.
“It was a great day for me and I wanted this title more than anything else.
I had a tough Olympic race and just wanted to do my best.
It was quite tactical at the start, then I attacked and tried to keep my speed, ”commented the Habs after the race.
🇫🇷🚴♀️ Pauline Ferrand-Prévot remains EUROPEAN CHAMPION in cross-country mountain biking, the Frenchwoman has crushed the competition! #LequipeVTT pic.twitter.com/wGWeBV8Xrb
- the L'Équipe channel (@lachainelequipe) August 15, 2021
The three-time world champion of the discipline (2015, 2019, 2020) attacked from the fourth of the seven laps of the race, when she belonged to a group of eight riders, to finally beat the Dutch Anne Terpstra (+1 ′16) and Anne Tauber (+ 1′38 ′ ').
The other committed Frenchwoman, Léna Gérault, finished in 18th place.
Present in Tokyo, world number 1 Loana Lecomte had overlooked the competition.
The Swiss Jolanda Neff, Olympic champion in Japan less than three weeks ago, was also absent, preferring to prepare for the Worlds, on August 29, in Italy. Here again, "PFP" will have to defend its property.