Camille Balanche
Personal information
Born (1990-03-01) 1 March 1990 (age 34)
Le Locle, Switzerland
Team information
DisciplineMountain bike racing
Rider typeDownhill

Camille Balanche (born 1 March 1990) is a Swiss cyclist. In 2020, she won the women's downhill race at the UCI Mountain Bike & Trials World Championships held in Leogang, Austria.[1][2][3][4][5] She is the first Swiss rider to win a Downhill world title.[1]

Biography

Daughter of Gérald Balanche and Nacira Larfi Balanche, Camille Balanche was born in Le Locle and grew up in La Chaux-de-Fonds.[6] At the age of 12, she began her sporting career in ice hockey at the La Chaux-de-Fonds Hockey Club, before joining Montréal once she could no longer play in men's teams. In 2010, she was selected to play for Switzerland in the Olympic Games. [6]

Returning after the games, she started studying in the Federal Sporting School of Macolin and stopped ice hockey. In 2014, beside of her studies, she discovered cycling and began a career in enduro. She won the first Swiss Cup in the discipline, joining the international field.[6]

In 2017, she began a new career in downhill, winning a bronze medal during the 2018 European Championships. She became European downhill champion the following year.[6]

In 2020, she became downhill world champion.[7]

Personal life

Balanche has been in a relationship since 2017 with Emilie Siegenthaler, a fellow downhill mountain bike racer. [8]

Palmarès

2018
3rd Swiss National Mountain Bike Championships (DH)
2019
1st European Mountain Bike Championships (DH)
UCI Mountain Bike World Cup (DH)
3rd Round 6 (Val di Sole, Italy)
2020
1st UCI Mountain Bike World Championships (DH)
1st Swiss National Mountain Bike Championships (DH)
2021
3rd UCI Mountain Bike World Championships (DH)
1st Swiss National Mountain Bike Championships (DH)
UCI Mountain Bike World Cup (DH)
1st Round 1 (Leogang, Austria)
3rd Round 2 (Les Gets, France)
3rd Round 3 (Maribor, Slovenia)
2nd Round 5 (Snowshoe, United States)
3rd Round 6 (Snowshoe, United States)
2022
1st Overall UCI Mountain Bike World Cup (DH)
1st Round 1 (Lourdes, France)
2nd Round 2 (Fort William, Scotland)
1st Round 3 (Leogang, Austria)
2nd Round 4 (Lenzerheide, Switzerland)
3rd Round 5 (Vallnord, Andorra)
1st Round 6 (Snowshoe, United States)
1st Swiss National Mountain Bike Championships (DH)
2023
UCI Mountain Bike World Cup (DH)
2nd Round 1 (Lenzerheide, Switzerland)

References

  1. ^ a b Morgan, Liam (11 October 2020). "Balanche wins women's downhill to make history for Switzerland at UCI Mountain Bike World Championships". InsideTheGames.biz. Archived from the original on 20 November 2020. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  2. ^ "Women's downhill". UCI Mountain Bike & Trials World Championships. Archived from the original on 17 October 2020. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  3. ^ "Live Updates & Results: Leogang Downhill World Championships 2020". Pinkbike. 11 October 2020. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  4. ^ "Historic downhill titles for Ireland and Switzerland in Leogang". Union Cycliste Internationale. 12 October 2020. Archived from the original on 12 October 2020. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
  5. ^ MCKALL, TERRY (12 October 2020). "Mark Wallace fourth at snowy world championships in Leogang Reece Wilson and Camille Blanche thrive in brutal conditions to take wins in Austria". Cycling Magazine. Archived from the original on 12 October 2020. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
  6. ^ a b c d Mathieu Roduit; JCE (29 August 2018). "Camille Balanche est une fonceuse atypique" [Camille Balanche is an atypical go-getter]. Arcinfo (in French). p. 17.
  7. ^ mne (8 May 2019). "La consécration pour Camille Balanche" [An accolade for Camille Balanche]. RTN (in French). Retrieved 27 June 2022.
  8. ^ Jade Albasini (18 January 2018). "VTT: Camille Balanche, une championne tout-terrain" [MTB: Camille Balanche, an off-road champion]. Illustre (in French). Retrieved 27 June 2022.

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