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XTERRA European Tour Wrap

XTERRA's managing director "Kahuna Dave" Nicholas is back in the U.S. and in Bend, Oregon for tomorrow's XTERRA Trail Run Nationals, but put these thoughts together on the 2010 XTERRA European tour finale...

Once the dust had settled at the XTERRA European Tour final stop in Prangins, Switzerland two XTERRA pros from France (le magnifique) stood on top of the European tour pro standings. For their wins, Franky Batelier and Marion (call her “Bubu”) Lorblanchet each earned US$4,000 as part of the XTERRA European Tour Championship US$20,000 prize purse. Batelier repeats as tour champ after having gone a perfect 4-for-4 in 2009 and winning 3 of the 4 races he entered this year. Look for Batelier to be a strong contender for the XTERRA World Championship title this year in Maui.

The women’s title was to be determined on the trails of Switzerland. Holding a slim lead over Lorblanchet in the standings Renata Bucher didn’t have to win in Switzerland to be crowned European Tour Champ for the fifth time, she simply had to finish ahead of her. But on the second lap of the run the French woman was able to pass Bucher for the race lead and hold on for first place. The win gave Lorblanchet a total of 380 points in the tour standings and locked her into a tie with Bucher for the women’s tour title. XTERRA tie-breaker rules are determined by the finishing position in the last race of the season. By winning the last race, Bubu tied Renata and the tie breaker made her the series champ.

To see a list of age group champs from the 2010 XTERRA European Tour visit www.xterraeurope.com.