Overview
- The invitational in Gelsenkirchen features a mass start at 18:15 followed by a pursuit, with live coverage on ARD and Eurosport.
- Organizers expect about 44,000 spectators for a field of ten teams representing nine nations.
- A moment of silence is scheduled in memory of Norway’s Sivert Guttorm Bakken and Germany’s Laura Dahlmeier.
- Germany’s Janina Hettich-Walz/Justus Strelow and Marlene Fichtner/Danilo Riethmüller headline the home entries, with fans hoping to end a drought dating to 2016.
- Team France with Lou Jeanmonnot (96% hit rate reported) and Fabien Claude is listed among the favorites, and the rebuilt 1.4 km loop with the Plateau Nord climb, a hairpin descent and a tunnel back into the arena heightens the emphasis on clean shooting in this non-World Cup show event.