Davison, Giger lead after stage 1 of the 2012 Langkawi MTB Challenge
American Olympian takes control of the six-day mountain bike event after two days of racing
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American Lea Davison (Specialized) and Fabian Giger (Rabobank-Giant Offroad) on Tuesday took command of the women’s and men’s overall classifications, respectively, at the Langkawi MTB Challenge after two days of racing.
With riders including 2012 Olympians Todd Wells (Specialized), Burry Stander (Specialized), Florian Vogel (Scott-Swisspower), Eva Lechner (Colnago-Sudtiroland) and Davison, the six-day race enjoys a stacked field this year.
Vogel took the men’s prologue win Monday, with Simon Gegenheimer (Ultra Sports Racing) second and Emil Lindgren (Rabobank) third.
Giger, who finished the World Cup in ninth overall, took control of the yellow leader’s jersey on Tuesday, winning stage 1 over Kristian Hynek (Ceska Sporitelna-Specialized) and defending champion Karl Platt (Team Bulls).
Davison took the pink leader’s jersey on Tuesday by erasing a four-second gap to Lechner, who won the women’s prologue. Lechner’s teammate, defending champion Nathalie Schneitter, finished second on the first stage after finishing third in the prologue. Slovakian cross-country champion Janka Stevkova finished third on the day.