Maxime Schmid
Sam Gaze celebrates after winning the short-track race at the UCI Mountainbike World Championships in France.
Sam Gaze punched the air in celebration as he crossed the finish line to win a dramatic short-track race at the Mountainbike World Championships in France.
Just a few weeks after striking gold in a New Zealand 1-2 finish at the Commonwealth Games, Gaze was able to celebrate another victory after winning a world title in the sport’s shorter format.
Gaze was locked in a two-way battle with American Christopher Blevins on the final lap of the 10-lap race but Blevins crashed on a rock garden as the leaders approached the final corner.
That allowed Gaze to ride through to the finish line uncontested in a time of 22 min 21 sec with Swiss duo Filippo Colombo and Thomas Litscher three and seven seconds behind.
The short-track race is held as a precursor to the main cross-country race on Monday where Gaze will be joined by Anton Cooper, Ben Oliver and Craig Oliver.
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