WHEN WILL HATHERLY WIN A XCO WORLD CUP?

South Africa’s Alan Hatherly came really close to winning a XCO World Cup at Lenzerheide in 2022 in a sprint against Luca Braidot for first place. He then grabbed second place with a late-race charge there again this past weekend. He’s won a XCC World Cup, but his first XCO World Cup win is surely close now. Will it come this season? We think it will. Here’s why.

By Sean Badenhorst

The only South African to have won a UCI XCO World Cup race is the late Burry Stander. He won two in his abbreviated career – the first in Champery, Switzerland in 2009 and the second in Windham, USA in 2012. Fortunately, we South Africans have been able to channel our patriotic XCO support to Hatherly over the past few years, who has proved a more-than-worthy successor to Stander.

Here’s Hatherly’s progression in World Cup XCO since he started racing in the Elite category internationally.

2019

Albstadt 37^th

Nove Mesto 28^th

Vallnord 27^th

Les Gets 43^rd

Snowshoe 58^th

2020 (Covid-19 affected season)

Nove Mesto #1 6^th

Nove Mesto #2 5^th

2021

Albstadt 8^th

Nove Mesto 6^th

Leogang 24^th

Les Gets 4^th

Lenzerheide 4^th

Snowshoe 25^th

2022

Petropolis 9^th

Albstadt 7^th

Nove Mesto 5^th

Leogang 3^rd

Lenzerheide 2^nd

Vallnord 25^th

Snowshoe 8^th

Mont St Anne 17^th

2023 so far

Nove Mesto 10^th

Lenzerheide 2^nd

Although it only hosted two World Cup rounds, 2020 was Hatherly’s breakthrough year, with a sixth and a fifth on the demanding Nove Mesto course. Both races were in damp-to-wet conditions. Although his two second places have come in relatively dry conditions, Hatherly generally races well in the wet.

It’s no secret that Nino Schurter, the discipline’s most decorated athlete, dislikes racing in the wet. Schurter’s record-setting victory at Lenzerheide, combined with his fifth place in the wet at Nove Mesto, confirm that the Swiss ace must be beaten if Hatherly is to win his first XCO World Cup race. That’s quite a big ask. Beat the greatest XCO racer of all time to get your first World Cup win. But, as we have seen, Schurter is beatable. Only two of Schurter’s 34 World Cup wins have come since 2019.

Obviously Schurter isn’t the only rider the South African must beat, but he’s going to need to finish ahead of an in-form and motivated Schurter if he wants to win, that much is clear. And the others of course. So far, Jordan Sarrou (4^th and 3^rd) and Thomas Griot (5^th and 4^th) have shown early World Cup Series consistency, but Hatherly beat both at Lenzerheide on Sunday – just! Then there are at least half a dozen more that can – or have already – won a XCO World Cup that the South African star needs to dispatch on his way to the top of the podium. It’s never going to be easy.

“I know this course really well. I have good memories at Lenzerheide – from winning my Under-23 World Champs title here to sprinting for fourth in 2021, then sprinting for second last year and again this year! I really know how to race this course well somehow. I was on the back foot early on. I am recovering from an injured knee and I have sore ribs from my crash in the Short Course, so was not sure what to expect. But it turned out well for me as I was able to pick off everyone one by one and still have good legs for the sprint,” Hatherly told Cycling South Africa in an interview after the race on Sunday.

His demeanour during the interview was relaxed as he grinned throughout, exuding positive energy. This is a young man who has proven he can race against and beat the best in the world. He needs to carry this confidence and form with him for a while. And he needs a better first lap so that he’s at or near the front early enough to be able to take charge.

He’s improved each year with his consistency and ability to finish in the top 10. His second place in only the second race of the 2023 season is a positive sign that Hatherly has come into the 2023 World Cup Series physically and mentally ready. It now all just needs to come together to deliver the perfect race.

So which World Cup venue will see Hatherly collect his first XCO win? Round 4 at Leogang on 18 June? Round 5 at Val di Sole on 2 July? Round 6 at Vallnord, Andorra on 27 August? All three are iconic World Cup race venues and he was third – albeit a distant third – at Leogang last year. He was 11^th at Val di Sole last year, but that was after putting everything into the XCC on the Friday to secure the XCC World Cup Series title. And he was 25^th at Vallnord last year, but was ill.

Round 7 at Haute Savoie, France on 17 September, is a new World Cup venue. And then there’s the North American rounds at Snowshoe, USA on 1 October and Mont St Anne, Canada on 8 October. So still six more opportunities for the South African to gun for that much-coveted first XCO victory this year.

But his form is good right now and he isn’t distracted by the XCC series like he was last year. Also, some of the best racers of 2022 appear to lack the sharpness they enjoyed last year. Perhaps they’re still building up their form. Or Hatherly is just a little faster this year. Either way, the whole of South Africa is behind Hatherly no matter which World Cup race he lines up for. We’ve got a feeling that win will come sooner rather than later…

Catch Hatherly and the other South Africans in action at Leogang later this week in the XCC, XCO and Downhill. Full details on the UCI MTB World Series website here.