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Olympic champion Tom Pidcock has poured scorn on the Paris cross-country course, claiming “it’s not really mountain biking”.
Elancourt Hill, the highest point of the capital region at 231 metres, is an old quarry and the parcours consists of a rolling, physical 4.4km circuit.
World-renowned South African course designer Nick Floros has gravelled over huge sections of the course, seemingly in fear of rain, with Pidcock expecting a diminished spectacle as a result.
“It’s not the best course in the world,” said Pidcock ahead of Monday’s race. “I think they could have done a better job of making it a proper mountain bike course.
“We love mountain biking for what it is, that’s what drives us to do it, the courses you get to ride and the places you go to. There’s not much thinking that goes into it, you just go down one line.
“If you just gravel over a nice hillside, it’s not really mountain biking.”
Pidcock won Team GB’s first gold in Tokyo after a fraught build-up that saw him qualify at the last moment and fracture his collarbone in training a few days before the Games.
The Ineos Grenadier’s run-in to Paris has been far from perfect after he contracted Covid and was forced to withdraw from the Tour de France.
Pidcock was testing positive for six days after withdrawing from Le Tour at Stage 14 but insists he has made a full recovery.
“I’m in a good place,” said Pidcock. I’m happy with where I am. I’ve recovered well. And, yes, I think I can be pretty content with how my recovery went.
“The plan was always to finish the Tour, getting sick was not part of that plan, and we have to adapt to that.”
Pidcock doesn’t come across as much of a sentimentalist, constantly switching disciplines and moving on to the next ambition.
But being an Olympic champion seems to have had a big impact on him.
“I think the Olympics transcends cycling as a sport,” said Pidcock. “The feeling of representing your country at the Olympics isn’t like anything else, you’re representing the whole nation, and you feel that as a weight on your back rather than your shoulders.
“It can push you along if you let it or if you don’t manage it well, you can fall over backwards. Winning in Tokyo was one of those moments I’ll never forget.
“When I was travelling back to the UK, the air stewards, the people in the hotel, they give you that typical nice British happiness and friendliness. Everyone’s proud and happy you see that when people recognised me or spoke to me. That makes me feel quite proud.
“You have this platform to inspire people and personally, that means a lot to me, to give the right example and lead by example.”
:: Watch every moment of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 live only on discovery+, the streaming home of the Olympics.
