Puck Pieterse gives a real lesson in mud and wins the XCO World Cup in Leogang 2025

The Dutch rider Puck Pieterse (Alpecin-Deceuninck) has convincingly won the women's Elite XCO race at the Leogang World Cup. On a day marked by mud, technical difficulty of the course, and mechanical issues, the world champion dominated from start to finish to claim her first victory of the season.

Puck Pieterse dominates in Leogang

The start was clean and from the first corner Pieterse took the lead, setting a pace that none of her rivals could follow. Behind her, Loana Lecomte (BMC Factory Racing) tried to stay on her wheel in the early stages, moving up from a bad starting position with a great tactical move. But it was New Zealand's Samara Maxwell (Decathlon Ford Racing Team) who would establish herself as the main pursuer of the Dutch rider.

Pieterse set the fastest lap of the day in the first lap with a time of 13:43, making it clear that her intention was to open a gap as soon as possible. By the halfway point of the race, she already had almost a minute's lead over Maxwell, while an exciting battle for third place unfolded between Lecomte, Ramona Forchini (BIXS Performance Race Team), and a rising Jolanda Neff (Cannondale Factory Racing), who staged a brilliant comeback in the final laps.

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The race was not without setbacks: Samara Maxwell suffered a chain drop that forced her to stop, although she managed to maintain the second position. Meanwhile, Austrian rider Mona Mitterwallner, the local favorite, suffered a puncture in lap 3 that pushed her out of the top 10.

Pieterse's superiority remained until the end. The bell for the final lap rang with the Dutch rider completely in control, with no mistakes in the technical sections and an impressive cadence. She finally crossed the finish line with a time of 1:26:39, 50 seconds ahead of Maxwell and with a 1:26 lead over Forchini, who managed to defend the third place against Neff's pressure.

Top 10 - Leogang 2025 XCO World Cup - Women's Elite

1. Puck Pieterse (Alpecin-Deceuninck) - 1:26:39
2. Samara Maxwell (Decathlon Ford Racing Team) - 1:27:29 (+50s)
3. Ramona Forchini (BIXS Performance Race Team) - 1:28:05 (+1:26)
4. Jolanda Neff (Cannondale Factory Racing) - 1:28:20 (+1:41)
5. Tamara Wiedmann (Mondraker Factory Racing XC) - 1:28:20 (+1:41)
6. Loana Lecomte (BMC Factory Racing) - 1:28:43 (+2:04)
7. Isla Short - 1:29:05 (+2:26)
8. Nicole Koller (Ghost Factory Racing) - 1:29:25 (+2:46)

With this victory, Pieterse not only reaffirms her status as the best specialist in technical conditions, but also makes history as the first rider to win with the new Shimano XTR Di2 group in an Elite XCO race.