Down but not out. That was the attitude of defending champion Tom Pidcock as he waited calmly for a front wheel change during the men’s cross-country mountain bike race at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris today. Fortunes can flip in the blink of an eye, and a punctured front tyre had thrown the Brit from being part of the leading duo down to ninth as he emerged with a fresh wheel.
Salvaging anything at all from the situation would be a mammoth undertaking given that Pidcock had lost 24 seconds, but not an impossible one. With the relentless nature of a Yorkshire terrier, he took off. There is a fine line in every Olympic discipline between pushing your abilities to the maximum and endangering yourself in the hunt for a medal, especially in one that sees riders fling themselves over jumps and downhill over rocks at breakneck speeds. Yet Pidcock manages to walk that line with the ease of an acrobat, as his European, World and Olympic titles attest to.
Bolstered by home support, Frenchman Victor Koretsky remained at the head of the race as Pidcock began making his way through the pack to sit in third position. Half an hour after his puncture, he could see the leader once more and with two laps remaining, moved ahead of South Africa’s Alan Hatherly to be second on the course. Soon Pidcock was in front, retaking a lead that had looked out of his reach.
The trio of Pidcock, Koretsky and Hatherly rode together past the bell to signify the final lap, and an intense battle ensued between the Frenchman and Pidcock in particular.
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As the commentators vocalised expectations of an attack from Pidcock, it was Koretsky who flipped the script, shooting by his rival as hordes of French fans cheered him on. A small gap formed but Pidcock clawed his back to sweep past Koretsky again. Then the duo swapped places once more, Koretsky unable to be tamed.
The two men weaved their way through the turns and jumps of the final lap with a freshness fuelled by the enthusiasm of the crowd. The gold medal would be decided in the trees – the route split into two, with Pidcock taking the left side and Koretsky the right. They came back together and it was Pidcock now just ahead, a brief coming together disrupting Koretsky’s momentum. Pidcock emerged at the finish line alone and, to a chorus of boos from French fans, crossed the line to win the gold medal. The boos turned to cheers as Koretsky took silver.
Thanks to the skill and determination of both men, it will be remembered as a race for the ages. Pidcock did will to recover from contracting Covid at the Tour de France to even be at the Olympics, then recovered from a puncture and a lengthy wait to claw his way to the top, his reward being back-to-back Olympic mountain bike gold medals.
And all on the eve of his 25th birthday too.
