Mont Sainte-Anne, July 26 2009 (Sportcom) - Canada's Catharine Pendrel (Luna Pro Team) was impressive in the World Cup mountain bike race on Sunday at Mont Sainte-Anne. A victim of a mechanical problem early in the race, the crowd favorite, Marie-Hélène Prémont, finished in tenth place (5 min 24 s).
Russia's Irina Kalentieva (Topeak-Ergon, 1 min 31 s) and Czech Katerina Nash (Luna Pro Team, 1 min 49 s) completed the trio of medalists.
At the end of the first of four laps, the anchor of the Rocky Mountain-Maxxis team had an air leak in her rear tire. Already a challenge, the course at Mont Sainte-Anne was not going to make life easier, especially since it had become even more slippery as the rain fell on the mountain. Prémont had to stop at the Tech Zone to replace her wheel.
"I felt good in the first lap and I was riding my bike really well in the technical sections," said Prémont, who finished in second place in the World Cup in Madrid in May. "The legs were there, but I experienced some breathing problems. My first lap was excellent before I had the trouble with my rear tire. I thought I had fixed the one puncture, but rather it was my tire that was marginal, which meant that I lost a lot of air. I decided to slow down to get to the mechanical area."
Translated from Sportcom Press release.