Cyclist Janika Loiv finishes 17th at World Championships after gear failure
Reigning Estonian mountain bike champion Janika Loiv finished 17th in the elite women’s Olympic cross-country race at the World Championships in Val di Sole, Italy. She was 5 minutes 44 seconds behind the winner, Swiss athlete Sina Frei.
The problem arose on the third lap
According to ERR News, Frei won the gold medal with a time of 1:27:50. Loiv said she had a strong start and was only 20 seconds behind the leader after the opening lap. At the beginning of the race, she held back her pace because of the heat and the race’s length.
On the third lap, the Estonian athlete began having problems shifting gears: at first the system worked inconsistently, and later the gears stopped shifting altogether. As a result, Loiv had to climb 15–20% gradients in a gear that was too high.
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Lost positions and cramps
The athlete was able to restart the shifting system in the technical zone, but several rivals passed her during that time. Loiv noted that her legs were tired after the problematic lap, and she then rode at her own pace. She also experienced cramps during the race. Janika Loiv represented Estonia at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
Results of other Estonian athletes
In the women’s under-23 race, Mairit Kaarjärv finished 51st and Maribel Rannala was 53rd. In the men’s race in the same age category, Mattias Mittus finished 58th.
