October 27, 2008

Podiums at Copa Chile Jeep

New faces hop onto podiums at round three of the Copa Chile Jeep

The third round of the Copa Chile Jeep 2008 series was held at Cajón del Maipo. The category one UCI event was one of just three such categorized races in South America. Javier Püschel won the cross country and Juan Cartoni was the surprise winner of the downhill. The cross country circuit featured technical climbs and descents. In the men's race, Püschel (Scott) brought an end to the supremacy of the Pan-American champion Cristóbal Silva (Cannondale), beating him by more than two minutes. "This victory was the morale boost that I was missing," said Püschel. Silva appeared exhasted in the early laps, showing fatigue after so much racing in recent months. In the women's cross country, Francisca Campos (Scott) proved why she's one of the best on the continent, after obtaining a solid first place finish more than five minutes ahead of her closest follower, Daniela Bunzli (Cannondale).

Downhill racers faced a steep and rough track. National champion Antonio Leiva, who suffered a broken femur in the last Copa Chile Jeep race, was, of course, still absent from competition. Juan Cartoni didn't let the opportunity pass and won a hard-fought final by only four seconds over Pedro Ferreira. "This podium is the fruit of my consistency and proves that I am a candidate for the overall ranking," he said from the hot seat. In the women's elite race, Verónica Miranda prove her bike handling skills and secured the win as well as leadership of the overall rankings. The next round will be held November 8-9 in Concepción, Southern Chile.
   


Credit: Images by Cristóbal Sahr