Montreal, April 25 2010 (Sportcom) - Marie-Hélène Prémont finished eighth in the first World Cup mountain bike in Dalby Forest Yorkshire, run Sunday in Great Britain. Prémont was 1 min 37 sec back of the winning Russian champion and world champion, Irina Kalentieva (1 hour 54 minutes and 57 seconds), who was the fastest of 90 competitors.
At the finish line, Kalentieva beat the American, Willow Koeber (11 seconds) and Czech Katerina Nash (28 seconds). The British Columbian Catharine Pendrel (57 seconds) was the top Canadian, finishing sixth. Cindy Montambault, Val d'Or, has not finished the race.
Prémont of Chateau-Richer, did not have a great start and she quickly found herself in 41st place after a crash in front of her. The leader of Maxxis-Rocky Mountain team pushed back toward the front of the race to end up in 13th place with only two laps left to go in the race.
"I'm really happy, even if I had a bad start. There was a fall in front of me and I found myself in the woods. The trail was narrow and there was only one place where we could pass. Since there were no openings, the girls would speed up and let no one pass. So I could only move one person at a time," she said.
The racer was frustrated to have lost time at the beginning of race, but slowly and surely, she came back into the top 10 as the race progressed.
"On the climbs, I gave it everything I had and that's where I managed to pass some girls. I had good legs, good feelings and my breathing was good, so everything is positive! "Prémont said with confidence. "I'm only a minute and a half from the first and I looked forward to the time at every lap, because I think I rode the same speed as the girls who were in front. If I had a different start, I think I could have been on the podium."
After experiencing health problems last season, the 32 year old athlete had begun to find her marks at the end of the season. During the winter, the silver medalist at the Athens Games has consulted with several specialists in massage therapy, osteopathy and physiotherapy, plus exercises to help her breathing and well open her rib cage.
"Last year, my hips were a bit crooked, which caused me to have a stiff leg. I worked hard to improve my posture this winter and today, I really saw a difference. It was much nicer than anything I did last year. I was fighting more against myself than against the others."
"Last year, I did not want to end my career on a negative note. The passion for mountain bike racing was still there and it motivated me to know that I was not where I should be. The other motivation was that the World Championships this year at Mont Sainte-Anne where I can race in front of my family and friends," concluded the champion of the 2008 World Cup.
The next stage of the World Cup will be held in Houffalize, Belgium, the end of next week.
Translated from Sportcom Press release.