PREVIEW-Olympics-Cycling-Absalon calm about chance of third gold

August 10, 2012|Reuters

By Julien Pretot

LONDON, Aug 10 (Reuters) - With two Olympic titles behind
him, French rider Julien Absalon can afford to be relaxed about
Sunday's mountain bike event which concludes the cycling
programme at the London Olympics.

"In Athens I was very young and it was the start of my
dominance in the discipline. In Beijing I was the hot favourite
and I had to face a lot of stress and expectations," the 2000
and 2004 champion told reporters.

"I've come here more relaxed, I've got more experience, I'm
the only one to have already won two gold medals and this takes
some pressure off me. One medal here would be just a bonus."

Four-time world champion Absalon will be the favourite on
the tricky Hadleigh Farm course, along with World Cup winner
Nino Schurter of Switzerland.

The two men won six of the seven World Cup events between
them this season, with Absalon taking two.

"I'm not any more the only man to beat, like in Beijing. I
think the big favourite this time is Nino Schurter, followed by
(Czech world number two) Jaroslav Kulhavy and myself. I would
say there are three favourites," said the 31-year-old, who led a
French one-two ahead of Jean-Christophe Peraud in 2008.

This year, the race will be shorter than at previous Games,
albeit much more intense.

"It's very difficult, there's not much place to recover,
it's very technical and that's why I still have to work on it,"
said Absalon.

"We have to know perfectly where to put our wheels and what
kind of speed to go at. It's very different from the previous
Olympic Games as the sport has changed a lot."

In Athens, Absalon won in two hours 15 minutes; in Beijing
it was four minutes under two hours. "Here the race lasts
between one-and-a-half hours and one hour and 45 minutes, so
it's much shorter. It's a much more condensed circuit," he said.

In Saturday's women's race, the 23-year-old Frenchwoman
Julie Bresset will be looking to become the youngest female
mountain bike Olympic medallist.

Bresset played down her chances even though she ended the
season as world number three.

"In my opinion the big favourite is (Canada's) Catharine
Prendel. She had three wins in the World Cup and she's the
leader in the overall standings. Then we are five or six (who
can aim for a podium finish)."

(Editing by Clare Fallon)