Miranda Factory Team with a podium in Switzerland

The return of the Enduro World Series - E (EWS-E) took place yesterday at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana. In this e-bike category and with a total of 50 athletes, we can highlight the presence of the UCI Miranda Factory Team represented by Emanuel Pombo, Tiago Ladeira and the newcomer Nuno Reis.

The Portuguese team, and current World Champion, used the KTM Macina Prowler Exonic model powered by Miranda Bike Parts. In Crans-Montana, the athletes faced one of the most demanding races so far, with a total of 9 special tests in three laps, accounting for about 70 km's and more than 4000 meters of positive altitude accumulated.

Tiago Ladeira showed his enormous evolution in this competition early on, guaranteeing consecutive performances within the top5. In the end, the athlete from Viseu secured a brilliant 4th place in the first round of the competition. “I felt good throughout the race and managed to do good special tests. In the end I was already losing some pace, but I managed to hold on to this great result. I’ll continue my work, to try to reach the overall podium in the future. Congratulations to the team and Miranda Bike Parts, for this first podium”.

Emanuel Pombo – current nº3 in the world, had good special tests, with particular emphasis on the last one of the day, where he registered the 2nd best time. Unfortunately a setback in the "power-stage" made him lose precious seconds. In the end, Pombo was placed 5th, right behind his teammate. “The level among athletes has improved a lot this year. I felt fast and competitive, however I felt some difficulties in the special tests located at higher altitudes. On the power-stage I made a mistake and was forced to jump off the bike, wasting a lot of time. Now it's time to adjust some details and think about the next race”.

The young athlete Nuno Reis, on the other hand, made his debut in the e-bike competitions. The current Portuguese Champion and a regular in the Downhill World Cup had no luck on his side in Switzerland and was eventually forced to retire on the first lap. A gnarly crash in the first PEC and a mechanical setback in the second, dictated the athlete's debut. “The race did not go as I wanted. The crash I had was quite big and then I couldn't solve the problem in the second special test and ended up with a time penalti. The race ended there…Now I'm focusing on the next one and trying to improve some aspects”.

The Miranda Factory Team secured their first podium, taking 3rd place in Switzerland. The Portuguese team now heads to Italy – Finale Ligure next weekend, for the second round of the EWS-E 2021.