Tom Pidcock fourth after crash as Nino Schurter takes 10th title at UCI Mountain Bike World Championships

Veteran Swiss rider Nino Schurter made his experience count in Les Gets, winning the men's cross-country title at the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships thanks to a well-judged move on the final descent.

The 36-year-old fended off the advances of Spain's David Valero Serrano for most of the final lap, before attacking in the last 500 metres and crossing the line with room to spare. A hard-fought race from Italy's Luca Braidot brought him home 29 seconds behind Schurter, delivering him a well-earned bronze medal.

Despite fighting his way to the front from 36th place on the grid, Britain's Tom Pidcock was left empty-handed after fading, and then falling, in the final laps.

Brazil’s Henrique Avancini was the rider who made the best start, making it to the first corner in the lead, with Titouan Carod of France on his wheel.

On the first ascent of the 'never-ending climb' Pidcock was mid-pack and looking quite relaxed, but might have been feeling less so as he got caught in traffic when they reached the trees.

Carod had the lead into the first rock garden but found himself in a spot of bother, after taking a bit too much speed into the bend ahead of the boulders.

Avancini soon dropped back as veteran Schurter surged into the lead, while some riders struggled with the root turns.

With seven minutes gone in the race, Pidcock had gained nine places from his starting position. He was 30 seconds behind the leaders but coming up on them fast and as the race hit the second lap he was already closing on the top 10.

Samuel Gaze of New Zealand joined the elite selection of six out front looking to take advantage of the clear lines in front of them. Jordan Sarrou (France) had the lead before being dislodged by the same root as caused problems on the first lap.

That six was down to five when Gaze overwhipped a jump, landed heavily and abandoned the race.

Schurter and Sarrou rode into the third lap in tandem, with Pidcock 10 seconds behind them in sixth place, content to take a breather on the wheel of South African Alan Hatherly.

Into the trees and Pidcock had tacked onto the tail of the lead group, and on the half hour mark went the long way round them and into the lead for the first time.

While chasing on an innocuous grass turn of the descent, Schurter slipped off and lost more places and time to Pidcock. It was however, mechanically and physically recoverable as he was soon back on and able to close back up to the leaders.

That was when, with 11km raced, Pidcock began to fade. The fourth lap found him falling back further, as Schurter, Braidot and Valero Serrano pressed on.

By the start of the fifth lap he was back with them, and it looked likely to be between the quartet for the medals, with Sarrou some 20 seconds back.

Shortly before the hour Schurter increased the tempo and began to ride away.

Valero Serrano was able to just about stay with him, while Pidcock looked laboured and lost the better part of 20 seconds over barely two minutes. The tiredness was clearly getting to him, as not long later the talented 23-year-old caught his front wheel in a hole as he was turning and found himself unseated. Although able to continue, he had to stop in the pits for a rear wheel change, and his chance of a taking a medal was effectively over.

Valero Serrano and Schurter kept working, with the win now set to go to either the Spanish rider or the Swiss.

At the final ascent of the bigger of the two hills, Valero Serrano marked Schurter carefully and kept looking for opportunities. Schurter closed the door as quickly as Serrano spotted that it was open before making what proved to be the decisive move on the faster of the final sections.

With three rock gardens to go, Schurter simply needed to stay upright. He looked behind him, saw Valero Serrano was nowhere near and crossed the line for world title number 10.