05/16/2026
World Cup Short Track story of the men’s race:
With the formidable Forissier brothers not lining up in Oak Mountain, the favorite for the fast-format men’s race was anybody’s pick. Maxim Chane started as the highest ranked, but also had less time between the tape in World Cup racing in recent times. The Italians Michele Bonacina and Federico Spinazzè had all the World Cup racing experience and their eyes on the podium, but they’d also have some new names to contend with as the likes of American Junior Champion Lucas Wright earned himself a wildcard entry into the race.
At the gun, the wildcard immediately got to work, opening up a gap at the front and exiting the water 11 seconds ahead of a tight chase pack consisting of Michele Bonacina, Federico Spinazzè, and the USA’s Charlie Smoak and Reed Legg.
While the junior champion made his statement in the water, he wasn’t able to hold it on the bike where things started to change. The relatively unknown Reed Legg, making just his second elite start, put down a statement of a ride to take the fastest bike split and open up the opportunity for a first elite win with a ride a full 38 seconds faster than the rest of the field. Nicolas Dure put down the second fastest time to put himself back in the race, while Maxim Chane found his way into the leading pack with a strong ride from the Frenchman.
Dure put in a blistering run of 00:09:23 to take the fastest split and close the gap, but Legg had already done enough damage on the bike. In front of the home crowd, Legg took his first elite win and his first World Cup gold. Duré finished 2nd to make it 3 podiums from 4 stops in the series so far, with Bonacina just 4 seconds behind to take 3rd.
Tanks will be completely empty after that. Recovery now becomes the name of the game before they line up again for Sunday’s Full Distance.
Link in bio for results, splits, and updated leaderboard standings.
