Emmy Lan wins third-straight Enduro World Series round in Italy
Jesse Melamed continues overall battle with Richie Rude in Val di Fassa
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Enduro World Series / YouTube
It was another big weekend for Canadian endure racers in Europe, with four more podiums. That included a win for Vancouver Island’s Emmy Lan, her third-straight Enduro World Series win this year. Jesse Melamed finished second in Pro Men, furthering his overall points battle with the U.S.’s Richie Rude. Seth Sherlock also finished second, in the under-21 men’s race, moving up one spot from his finish last week in Petzen-Jamnica.
Under-21: Lan extends winning streak to three
Emmy Lan (Norco Factory Racing) started Sunday’s racing in second but, after winning every race stage on Sunday, walked away with the win. The young Vancouver Island rider is now three-for-three in 2022, winning in Tweed Valley, Petzen-Jamnica and now Val di Fassa.
Lan was joined on the podium by Lily Boucher (Forbidden Bikes). The B.C. rider moved up one spot over Sunday’s racing to take third behind Lan and Italy’s Sophie Riva.
On the men’s side, Seth Sherlock (Intense Factory Racing) continued to show he has skills beyond World Cup downhill racing. After finishing third last week at EWS Petzen-Jamnica, Sherlock stepped up into second this week in Italy. Sherlock rode consistently all Sunday to take second overall behind Luke Meier-Smith (Propain Factory Racing).
Emmett Hancock (We Are One) was just 3.6 seconds away from joining Sherlock on the podium. Hancock ended up fourth behind Jack Piercy (Commencal Les Orres) at the end of Sunday’s racing.
EWS Highlights: Val di Fassa Trentino
Pro Men: Jesse Melamed battles Rude to the line
The Pro Men’s race witnessed an epic battle between Richie Rude (Yeti-Fox) and Whistler’s Jesse Melamed (Rocky Mountain Race Face). Rude won Sunday’s Pro stage, but Melamed came out swinging on Sunday. The Canadian won stages 2 and 3, putting Rude on the back foot. Rude rallied on the day’s final stage, taking the stage win and race lead. Melamed finishes second by 5.39 seconds. That gives Rude the advantage in the season overall standings as well. Melamed also sits second going into round four, which will be on his home turf at Crankworx Whistler.
Rhys Verner (Forbidden Synthesis) added another top-10 finish to his season, placing eighth in Val di Fassa. Remi Gauvin (Rocky Mountain Race Face) worked his way up to 15th over the course of Sunday’s stages. McKay Vezina (Giant Factory Off-Road) placed 22nd and Jack Menzies (We Are One) 30th. Carter Krasny in 41st, Evan Wall (Devinci Global) in 50th, and Jacob Tooke in 102nd round out the Canadian effort.
Pro Women: ALN rallies to fourth
Isabeau Courdurier (Lapierre Zipp) walked away with another Enduro World Series win in Val di Fassa. But, behind the dominant French woman, a fierce battle played out. Morgane Charre (Pivot Factory) and Harriet Harnden (Trek Factory) finished just 5.18 seconds apart in the race for podium positions, with Charre ending up in second.
Andréane Lanthier Nadeau (Rocky Mountain Race Face) rode consistently all weekend to take fourth, her best finish so far in 2022, just ahead of 2021 EWS overall winner Melanie Pugin (BH Enduro)
Lucy Schick (Norco Factory Team) followed in 33rd, Angeline McKirdy in 39th, and Julia Long in 42nd round out the Canadian results.
Enduro World Series riders now have one month to recover before racing resumes right here in Canada. EWS Whister is back on the calendar for the first time in several years, from Aug. 6-7.
