Crown Prince
Photography by Michele Mondini
Scalpel continues its reign, and a hometown hero becomes royalty: Charlie Aldridge takes the UCI U23 XC World Championship.
GLENTRESS, Scotland –– If thoughts of a UCI World Championship gold medal weren’t enough, then maybe it was the relentlessly screaming fans. Maybe it was the Scalpel. Maybe it was thethrill of competing on a world stage in your home country. Or maybe Charlie Aldridge won the U23 XC title because he’s just really, really fast.
Cannondale Factory Racing team manager Manuel Fumic – who also happens to be a former U23 XC World Champion himself – practically saw it coming.
“Winning the World Championships in his home country, in front of family, friends, and fans, was one of Charlie's major goals this season,” Fumic said. “Securing the title marks a significant milestone in his career, and this achievement is just the beginning for him.”
“Charlie produced an outstanding performance today in front of his home crowd... It was a mature ride by a young athlete that loves riding his bike,” said Phil Dixon, CFR’s Performance Director.
“I still can’t get over how that felt,” said Aldridge in summarizing the day. “The crowd was insane on track. We’ve been building up to this one for a while and everything lined up perfectly on the day, so yeah, buzzing.”
The title marks another dominant performance for CFR and the Cannondale Scalpel at this year’s UCI Worlds, after Mona Mitterwallner claimed gold at the Marathon event – in which Scalpel swept the podium.
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