Saturday, September 8, 2007

Bad luck hampers Springs biker

University of Colorado at Colorado Springs student Sam Jurekovic finished in 61st place Friday in the under-23 men’s cross country portion of the Mountain Bike World Championships in Fort William, Scotland, after he broke a part and blew a flat.

Jurekovic, the under-23 cross country national champion, completed the 26.7-mile course in 2 hours, 20 minutes, 36 seconds, more than 26 minutes off the pace of winner Jakob Fuglsang of Denmark.

Starting in the No. 35 position, Jurekovic suffered a broken front derailleur on the third lap and a rear flat tire on the final lap. The flat tire proved most costly, as he was passed by about 20 riders on the homestretch.

“I just didn’t have anything,” said Jurekovic, a member of the USA Cycling National Development Team. “I had a good start position, but as soon as we hit the climb, there was a crash right in front of me and I had to get off. I was chasing from the beginning, and I couldn’t get going. I had nothing.”

Colorado Springs rider Kelli Emmett, sponsored by Giant, will compete today in the elite cross country portion of the world championships. She’s coming off an eighth-place finish at the National Mountain Bike Series finals.

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