Fan's clip shows Koretzky mistake before Pidcock took Olympic MTB gold | Video

Tom Pidcock prevailed after a gripping race in Paris, though his rival Victor Koretzky made a major mistake not captured in the TV footage

Tom Pidcock (Great Britain) overcame a puncture to in the gold medal in the Olympic MTB men's race in Paris today after a gripping two-man battle with France's Victor Koretzky.

Though Koretzky led for much of the race, after Pidcock punctured on the fourth lap and fell just over 35 seconds behind his French rival. Though Pidcock was fortunate to puncture close to the pits, his wheel change could have been faster.

However, the British rider slowly reeled in the lone leader, with South Africa's Alan Hatherly in tow. On though Pidcock attacked several times, Koretzky looked like he had the measure of him, even passing and forging ahead of Pidcock late in the race.

However, the duo went into the final together, and almost crashed as Pidcock took a better line through a forest section just before the finish. The two riders bumped off each other, with Koretzky losing momentum and going backwards as Pidcock sprinted in for victory, to the displeasure of the local crowd.

Advertisement

“After my puncture, I was rushing back to Koretzky," Pidcock said. "I knew how fast he was on the last lap. Racing is racing, that's what I did. It's a shame the French booed. It's a shame for Viktor, but it's the Olympics, you have to go all in."

A fan's video, below, now shows the moment when Koretzky was pulling away from Pidcock in the latter stages of the race but made a significant mistake, with his front wheel going off the track and coming into contact with a tree.

Though that also dented Koretzky's efforts, Pidcock was forced into a long fight back after losing significant time with his puncture and was a deserved winner.

Related News

He claimed gold by nine seconds from a very disappointed Koretzky, with Hartley taking the bronze at 11 seconds. It was Pidcock's second Olympic MTB gold as he also won the title three years ago in Tokyo.

Related News