MOUNTAIN BIKE WORLD CUP
Dream comes true for Sam Gaze in epic mountain bike challenge
The New Zealander captures the opening leg of the race, winning his first race as an elite athlete
New Zealand’s Sam Gaze realised a dream when he won the opening leg of the UCI Mercedes-Benz MTB World Cup in Stellenbosch at the weekend, beating the world champion Nino Schurter in a breathtaking sprint finish. The Kiwi fell to the ground at the end, half in agony, half in ecstasy after winning his first race as an elite athlete. He had been struggling with cramp for the last few laps, but the realisation that he had beaten Schurter, the Swiss superstar, who had gone unbeaten in all six legs of the 2017 World Cup, forced a smile through the pain. Maxime Marotte of France was third in a sprint in which Schurter faltered after his left foot uncleated from his pedal in the kick to the line. Mathieu van der Poel of the Netherlands was fourth and Frenchman Titouan Carod fifth. "It’s a dream come true," said Gaze, who won the under-23 world championship for the second time in 2017. "We live our lives through these guys and look up to them as young riders. I watched London 2012, and Jaro...
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