Fabien Barel announces his retirement on the La Bresse WC podium to a stunned crowd.

Three time Downhill World Champion (twice senior, once junior) Fabien Barel has just announced his retirement from World Cup racing on the podium in La Bresse. The Frenchman has had some serious injuries over the last few years. His fourth place on home soil today is as fitting place as any for him to tell the world that he will no longer be racing World Cups.

He will race the World Cup final in Val Di Sole then the World Champs in Champery will be his last.

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Nickname: Pinky

Age: 28

PoB: France

Team: Maxxis/Rocky Mountain

Worldcup overall 2008: 2

Career highlights: 1999 World Junior Champion, 2006 World Champion, 2007 World Champion, 3 time World Cup Champion

The results say it all, Sabrina Jonnier is one of the most successful downhill mountain biker’s in history. In 2008, she pushed Rachel Atherton to the line, scoring top three podiums throughout the season, and taking the win in Maribor. If she rides like that in 2009, she will be up there again.
As with many of today’s top mountain bikers, Jonnier grew up on a BMX, honing her skills on the race track at just six years of age. It wasn’t long before she heard the calling of the big wheels, and since then she has not looked back, winning pretty much every junior title out there, before going on to rack up a couple of World Championship wins.

Photo:James Allen

At 28 years of age, she has plenty of experience under her belt, and will surely be in the top three this year. The question is, whether she has enough in her to challenge a charging Rachel Atherton. With an additional race in the 2009 season, riders will need all the focus and experience they can muster in order to maintain the consistency needed to take the title. This could be where Jonnier’s more mature years and experience place her at an advantage.
Moving to a new team for 2009, she will be riding for Rocky Mountain on their Flatline downhill rig. Whether she will need time to adapt to this new bike remains to be seen, but she’s certainly not letting up, taking second place at the NZ National Champs to Emmeline Ragot.
With Tracy Moseley back on a full race team, and Rachel Atherton getting better and better, Jonnier has her work cut out. A multiple World Champ, she has what it takes to win.

Read Sabrina Jonnier’s 2009 downhill mountain bike world cup rider preview

Nickname: Fabio

Age: 29

PoB: France

Team: Subaru Mountain Bike Pro Team

WorldCup Overall 2008: 6

Career highlights: 2 x World Champion

Favourite food: Mum’s Lasagne

For Peaty, he just cannot get his mits on World Championship gold. For Barel it is the World Cup overall that eludes him. There is no doubting the Frenchman’s ability, narrowly missing out on his third Worlds gold in 2007 at the hands of the phenomenon that is Sam Hill. He clearly has the ability to rise to the occasion, but seems to find it hard to maintain the focus and consistency needed to keep it together throughout the season.

It would be wrong to count Barel out of the running this year. At 29 years of age, he has plenty of experience, and is far from over the hill. And while he may not have won the world cup overall, he is no stranger to the podium, with a career total of 19 podiums finishes to his name.

Photo:www.subaru-mtb.com

Having moved over to Mondraker for 2008, he has had a full season to get used to his new rig, fine tuning it ready for 2009. He has been busy in the off season too, organising and participating in ‘Urge Kenya’, a downhill charity fundraiser. Despite injuring his shoulder during the race he still managed an amazing third place on the relentless 24km downhill run. Does this hint at a dedication and determination yet to be seen on the World Cup circuit?
Barel is an active mountain bike ambassador, keen to promote the sport and advance the technology, approaching races with a calculated mindset. He will be all too aware of the influx of young, up and coming racers on the scene. He will also be aware that Peaty won his world cup overalls towards the latter half of his (ongoing) career.

read double world champion Fabien Barel subaru/mondraker downhill mountain bike riders 2009 world cup preview

Nickname: Brendog

Age: 21

PoB: England

Team: Monster Energy/Specialized/Mad Catz

2008 World Cup overall: 12

Career highlights: 2006 Junior World Cup Champion

Brendog has had a mixed time of it since moving out of the junior ranks in 2007. Riding for the legendary Honda team, he injured his hand pre-season in 07, and never really looked like putting it all together. Having said that, he did get 12th overall in the World Cup, which is good by any standard, especially at such a young age.

Becoming part of the Monster Energy/Iron Horse team in 2008, along with Sam Hill, expectations were once again high. A top ten finish at Maribor and it looked like he was finally starting to pull it together however, disappointing results in Vallnord and Fort William, set him back again.

He went on to put in some strong runs in the following World Cups, placing sixth at Bromont. But it was his performance at the last race of the season that demanded attention. Qualifying second fastest in Schladming, he put in a blinding second run, and looked good for the win. Less than a minute from the finish line however, his front wheel washed out on some plastic matting, laying to rest any hope of victory.

In his short career he has teamed up with some of the very best racers in the world, such as Minnaar, Peaty, Lehikoinen and now Sam Hill. He has ridden some of the best downhill bikes of recent times, in the shape of the Honda RH-1, and the Iron Horse Sunday. On this evidence, it would seem the racing world is anticipating big things from the young man from Surrey.

He has proved he is more than capable of putting in consistent, race winning runs, after all he is the 2006 Junior World Cup Champion. Riding the Demo 8 in 2009, Brendan is more than ready for the new season. With a company the size of Specialized backing him, he will surely have no excuses this year, and there’s every chance he won’t need any.
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Nickname: Blinky

Age: 21

PoB: New Zealand

Team: YetiFox Shox Factory Race Team

World Cup Overall 2008: 5

Career highlights: Winning 2008 Schladming World Cup.

Favourite food: Mum’s Lasagne

Sam’s somewhat modest objective for 2008 was to be in the top 10 at World Cup races. So it may have come as some surprise to the Kiwi ripper when he shot over the line in Schladming to take the last race of the 08 World Cup season. For anyone on the hill or in the pits over those few days in Schladming, a surprise it was not as Sam clocked the fastest times in practice and semis. He claims the bike was made for tracks like Schladming, but this detracts from his more general success in 08, and a natural ability on a bike.

Following a somewhat disappointing start to the 08 season, placing 31st at Maribor, Sam proceeded to make the top 10 at each of the remaining rounds of the World Cup, culminating in that first place at Schladming, ahead of the more established figures of Sam Hill, Greg Minnaar and Gee Atherton. Consistently finish in the top five of the World Cups, and you’re in with a shout at the overall. Blinky was almost there this year, coming from nowhere in just his second season out of juniors.

Having done well at the World Championships in Fort William in 2007 and at Schladming in 2008, we could assume that the Kiwi rider is suited to the bigger, more demanding downhill tracks. It’s no secret that Blinky loves a bit of motocross when he’s not on the push bike, which undoubtedly helps with big hits and big jumps. At such an early stage in his career it would however, be wrong to make such judgments, and anyway, he did well at all but one round last year.
With a first world cup win under his belt, he will be hungry for success in 2009. The support and ambition of the Yeti team, coupled with some solid off season training and second at the NZ Nationals, will surely lead to big things in 2009.

Read Sam Blenkinsop uci downhill mountain bike world cup dirt fantasy league rider profile

Name: Atherton, Rachel

Age: 22

PoB: England

Team: Animal Commencal

2008 World Cup overall: 1

Career highlights: 2008 World Champion, 2008 World Cup Champion

It is fair to say that in 2008, Rachel Atherton dominated the women’s downhill circuit, winning the World Cup overall and World Championship gold. On her way to the World Cup overall she took four World Cup wins, and only missed out on a top two finish at one race, in Fort William. She more than made up for missing most of the 2007 World Cup season through injury.

This only tells half the story, as it was not just the first place finishes that set Rachel apart from the rest, but the way in which she won them. At the World Champs in Val di Sole, she finished a massive 11.99 seconds up on multiple World Champion, Sabrina Jonnier. In the off season, she was reported to have been doing a load of training on her motocross bike, in order to improve her strength and endurance on the bigger tracks. It would appear to have paid off.

Photo:Sven Martin

The Animal Commencal team is one of the most professional outfits on the circuit, and with support from energy drink giants Red Bull, among others, she will have received the best pre-season build-up possible. Or at least that would have been the case if she hadn’t had an unfortunate training accident with a truck. According to those present, she was lucky to escape with just a dislocated shoulder. Latest reports have suggested that she may not be fully fit in time for the first race of the season, but information remains vague.

Even if she does miss the first round of the World Cups this year, it would be wrong to count Rachel out of the running for the overall title. When she came back from injury at the last race of the 2007 season, she took the win, demonstrating more than just a fighting spirit. The first British woman to win gold at the downhill World Champs, she stands every chance of repeating her epic performance of 2008, in Canberra this year.
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Name: Floriane, Pugin

Age: 20

PoB: France

Team: Playbiker/Iron Horse

2008 World Cup overall: 5

Career highlights: 2007 Junior World Champion

Floriane Pugin, a name that many of us had not heard of before the Fort William World Championships in 2007. After taking the win a massive 27 seconds up on second place finisher Katy Curd, it is safe to assume, things have changed.

The young French flyer has been riding mountain bikes since the age of eight, and living near Chatel in France, she no doubt had a few decent tracks to practice on. When asked who she sees as the rider to beat, she admits riding only for fun and to do the best she can at races, in order to reach the highest places. Having spent her childhood years idolising the legendary Anne-Caroline Chausson, she clearly has some big aspirations and aims for some pretty high places.

World Cup and World Champion Rachel Atherton has made more than one comment about the sheer speed of the young Pugin. In her first year out of Juniors, she took fifth place at the first World Cup in 2008 and second at the last. It’s worth pointing out that on her way to this second place in Schladming, she crashed.

A fourth place at the World Championships in Val di Sole is no mean feat for such a young rider, at the start of their career. As she grows in strength and confidence she is bound to begin fulfilling her potential and could grow into Rachel Atherton’s main adversary.

There is no doubt that Pugin has huge amounts of potential, with our very own Billy Trailstar (aka “Shirley”) expecting her to mount a serious challenge for the title in 2009.

Floriane Pugin

Name: Peat, Steve

Nickname: Peaty

Age: 35

PoB: England

Team: Santa Cruz Syndicate

2008 World Cup overall: 4

Career highlights: 3 x World Cup Champion

Favourite food: Fish & Chips

Steve Peat, aka ‘Oldschool’, perhaps in reference to his mature years, perhaps in reference to his balls out, no fear attitude. Peaty was consistently in the top five last year, taking podiums in all but one World Cup, and let’s be honest, Canberra wasn’t much of a World Cup.

With this year’s season being drawn out, and including one more race than in 2008, consistency will again prove to be key. And if experience breeds consistency, then you won’t find a more likely winner than Peaty, with an almighty 46 World Cup podium finishes. Getting on in age, will the extended season take its toll, or will the big man from Sheffield show the young guns exactly why he is considered one of the greatest riders of all time?

At 35 years old, and with a wife and child back in Sheffield, Peaty will openly admit he’s finding it harder to leave his family for the bright lights and late nights of the World Cup circuit, and yet he keeps coming back and showing the world he’s still on it. Will the patter of a second pair of tiny feet perhaps prove too much of a distraction?

Perhaps the stable family life is the perfect platform to launch yet another assault on the World Cup, and let’s not forget the World Champs. For those that might doubt the man’s commitment you need only have seen the look on his face in Val Di Sole as fellow countryman Gee Atherton pipped him at the last to take the gold in 2008.

Training in his beloved Wharncliffe Woods, through rain, sleet and snow does not make for a man who will back down in a fight, and with Gee getting faster by the minute, and Greg and Sam looking to rekindle their battle of 2008, a fight he will have.dr-steve-peat

Nickname: GeeMan

Age: 24

PoB: England

Team: Animal Commencal

2008 World Cup overall:3

Career highlights: 2008 World Champion

Two words, “World Champion”. Not to mention Andorra, and the Red Bull Rampage. Often regarded as one of the best all round mountain bikers on the planet, Gee had a phenomenal 2008 season, fulfilling the promise he showed back in 07.

Taking World Cup 4X out of his schedule paid off big time for Gee, as he stepped up a gear on the downhill World Cup circuit, coming third overall. With more energy and experience he looked a real threat, making podiums in all but one race, with a sixth place finish in Maribor. Whether he is the answer to Sam Hill’s domination remains to be seen, but for those of you that saw the World Champs, perhaps we already know, after all, staying on your bike through corners is a fundamental requirement to winning races.

The World Cups are mentally and physically demanding, requiring a solid and reliable team, none more so than this coming season, with its extra round and early start. Much has been said about the first family of downhill, but with their collective achievements of 08, we have proof of a tight knit, slick operation that gets results.

Once again, he has spent his winter out in California, putting in the miles on his road bike and spending time in the gym, with his own personal, Red Bull fitness expert. Seeding second in the Red Bull Rampage qualifiers shows just what this man is capable of. Pre-season races have gone well, taking second place to brother Dan at the Mob in Mojave downhill race.

Last year will have given Gee the confidence and belief that he can win at the very highest level. This year could be the year he takes the World Cup overall.gee-atherton

Nickname: HillTop

Age: 24

PoB: Australia

Team: Monster Energy/Specialized/Mad Catz

2008 World Cup overall:2

Career highlights: 2 x World Champion, World Cup Champion 2007

Specialized are back in downhill, and they have something pretty special to win races with, Sam Hill. Going into the 08 season, Hill was seen as the man to beat, having won both the world champs and world cup overall. Few expected anything less than a repeat of 2007.

Early season and things were looking all too familiar, with first and second place at Maribor and Andorra, respectively. But then things went weird at Fort William, and he came fifth. Worse was still to come. A nation held its breath as he tore the World’s track apart, with Gee in the start hut, Sam launched off the big step down and in to the left hander, and just as he began to reign the horse back in, it bucked.

Some say his confidence never recovered, and coupled with the big question of who he was riding for in 2009, perhaps he lost a little focus. He is, after all a relatively young contender at just 24 years of age. But let’s not knock his achievement last year. The fact we’re talking about Hill having an off year in 2008 is testimony to the skill and respect he has earned, after all, the man claimed second overall in the World Cup and third in the World Champs, despite having a major off. With all this behind him, and having already notched up a typical Hill style victory at the fourth round of the Australian Nationals, beating Mick Hannah by over six seconds, we can assume he’s back on it for 09.

Looking at his credentials, he has all it takes to become the most prolific victor in the world of downhill. As a relatively young sport, there are still plenty of records to set and titles to take. Hill is moving towards the end of the beginning of his career, and you never know, he may be yet to reach his peak, a frightening prospect for the competition.

sam-hill