Victor Koretzky (France, 1994) is one of the biggest names on the XCO international circuit and one of the many top-tier French bikers fighting for the big podiums. He was a junior world champion and has achieved important results in the World Cup, where he pursues his first victory. He is a regular on the Spanish calendar, where he treasures numerous victories.
Bec McConnell: The 2019 season brought you some great results. You won the French National Championships, a World Cup podium and several podiums at international races. Were you happy with the season?
Victor Koretzky: Of course I was satisfied with this season because I have had good results but I know that I am able to do better and make podiums more regularly.
You finished 2019 with an impressive second place at the Tokyo 2020 test event in a sprint finish with Nino Shurter. Do you think this is an indication of what you can do at the Olympic Games?
Yeah, I really want to do the same or better at the Olympic Games, it’s my goal to have a medal. But you know in France it's really complicated to go to the Olympics because we have only 3 places for 5 strong guys.
You were a World Champion as a Junior, do you think there are any major challenges or pressures that come with being so good at such a young age and did you have to manage your expectations when you moved through under 23 to elite racing?
Not really because the bike for me is a game and I don't have a lot of pressure. When I moved from U23 to Elite it was easy for me because I was upgraded to the 2016 Rio Olympics and on same year a do my 2 first podium at the World Cup.
It looks like you’ve been getting quite creative in the lockdown, the other day you rode 12km in your own backyard. Are you using this downtime to work on any particular strengths or weaknesses? On or off the bike?
I'm trying to keep myself busy right now, I'm doing things that I'm not used to doing, I think it's important to question myself and improve on my weaknesses. I'll try to get there even stronger than usual on the World Cups.
We have seen you race on a 120mm bike before. What makes this bike possible for you and what kind of courses are you choosing this bike? Many riders are so concerned about bike weight still resisting the dropper post and opting for hardtails. What are your thoughts about choosing the equipment?
Maybe it's strange choice for some people, on the Orbea OIZ it's really easy to move the bike from 100mm to 120mm of travel and you lose only 250g so it's like a dropper post. On the Nove Mesto track for me it’s a really good choice because it’s really bumpy and destroyed with lot of roots.
It only takes a quick look through your Instagram to see that you’re pretty comfortable and very capable on any bike. Did you choose the right discipline with XC racing? Had you ever considered downhill?
That isn't a bad question, I do a lot of jumps and some technical things on my bike because for me it's important to take lot of pleasure. I really enjoy to push myself in the suffer mode on XCO race, and I like this moment on XCO races!
Racing at the highest level cannot be done alone, is there anyone behind the scenes that has made a big impact on your continue success in the sport?
For sure you need a lot of support because it’s a big part of your success and you need to be free on your head to be performant on the race. You really want to do the best when your family is here to share the race.
You find all types of personalities in our sport and each has their own approach to training. Some are very structured watching every number, counting every carb and others are completely relaxed and training more to how they feel, at least that’s what they say they do. How do you approach your training?
Of course when you want to perform at the highest level you have to be demanding and everything calculated. But you must not be in sight and find middle line for me the most important is to be in the right conditions to perform and if something is wrong around it I try to ignore it…
You joined your team Orbea Ekoi KMC in 2014 (then BH-SR Suntour KMC) after your first year as an Under 23. You obviously feel at home to be racing for the same team eight years later? What is it about the environment that keeps you there?
It's true that I'm on the same team in 2014, I feel good with the staff and that's why I stay there. I feel really supported in this team and when I had difficult periods it always supported me and I could find good conditions of performance thereafter. I hope to continue with the same team next year.
The Swiss men’s team have the reputation but in my opinion the French as a nation really have the most depth. What do you think makes the French so strong?
I don’t know but for sure the level in France its amazing you have lot of strong people! On young categories you have a special trophy for riders, on region firstly and on country after the race including the trials, the downhill and the XCO so when you do all of this trophy you learn a lot of technical and it’s tough physically so maybe it’s one explanation?
You started the 2020 season super strong in Spain winning the last race in Chelva, 2nd in Banyoles and third in the Mediterranean Epic. What has been the biggest challenge with the uncertainty of the racing schedule ahead?
I didn't know that Chelva was going to be the last race before the stop of the races. I was in shape the weekend before in Banyoles and I tried to perform well in Chelva because I felt good. The hardest part was afterwards because I really wanted to do the races after…
What are you most looking forward to when we can get back to racing again?
Find the feeling of racing and the pressure that we have on the row at 15 seconds to start, I think it will be the most important for me!
Did you have anyone that you really looked up to when you were a young rider? Why?
I obviously liked Julien Absalon because he was French and the strongest of his generation. I also always liked Hermida who was always really nice with young riders. It's also the spirit of sharing that I like with a big rider!
Photo: Old View Photo
