New Zealand’s flying teens made their mark in the latest rounds of the UCI MTB World Series for Enduro and Downhill in the French Pyrenees resort of Loudenvielle-Peyragudes today.
Christchurch 18-year-old Winnie Goldsbury scored her first podium, finishing third in the latest round of the Enduro World Series in her first season in elite competition.
Across the mountain resort, a bunch of kiwi gravity riders have qualified in the top 10 ahead of tomorrow’s finals in the second round of downhill competition.
They were led by two-time junior world championship medallist Sacha Earnest, 19, who was 10th fastest in qualifying in just her second start as an elite rider for her new Trek Factory pro team. This earned her a direct start in tomorrow’s final on the exciting downhill track.
There are a further six kiwi teenagers to qualify inside the fastest 10 riders in their junior downhill qualifying.
Leading the way is Tauranga 17-year-old Eliana Hulsebosch (Santa Cruz) who was top qualifier in the junior women’s competition by nearly two seconds. She will be joined by Rotorua 17-year-old Bellah Birchall (Team High Road), who qualified fourth fastest with Queenstown’s Indy Deavoll 16, who was eighth fastest.
In the junior men’s qualifying, Kaikoura 18-year-old, Oli Clark (MS Racing) was second fastest with a brilliant run to be less than a second behind the top qualifier, Frenchman Till Alran from France.
Also inside the top 20 in qualifying were four more kiwi downhillers with Hawkes Bay’s Tyler Waite (18) from the Yeti Fox pro team fifth fastest. Other kiwis comprise 16-year-old Jonty Williamson (Palmerston North) from the Yeti Fox Factory team in sixth fastest followed by two Queenstown riders in 18-year-old Rory Meek seventh fastest and 16-year-old Malik Boatwright (Team High Country) 13th fastest.
The ”old man” of the kiwi contingent flying fast in Loudenvielle in qualifying was Rotorua’s Tuhoto Ariki Pene, 24, who qualified for the finals in the elite men. After missing out in the first qualifying session, the MS Racing professional produced a stunning ride of 3:17.313, up with the fastest of the day to top the second qualifying session.
He was among the fastest 10 in the second qualifying to move through to tomorrow’s final, along with Canterbury’s Luke Wayman, 18, (Continental Atherton pro team) managing seventh fastest.
However Rotorua’s Lachlan Stevens-McNab who was exceptionally fast on the open section, made a mistake in the tight second part of the course.
Goldsbury, 18, earned a breakthrough performance in the elite women’s Enduro competition, in just her third start this season.
She was super-fast throughout the competition, third after the opening stage, seventh in the second, fifth in the third, third in the penultimate stage and second fastest in the final stage.
She finished just 0.40s from second placed Morgan Charre (France) with series leader Ella Conolly (GBR) winning by 26 seconds, and jumps to seventh overall in the standings after three rounds. Nelson rider George Swift (Yeti Fox) was seventh today to be ninth overall.
Australian Daniel Booker took out the elite men’s competition with kiwi Charles Murray (Specialized Gravity) finishing eighth overall ahead of fellow kiwis Joe Millington, the Yeti Development NZ rider from Rotorua, who was 11th after finishing third fastest and second fastest in the last two stages.
Murray moved up one spot to seventh In the overall standings with riders moving on to the famed Austrian venue of Leogang for the fourth round next weekend.
Results:
Downhill qualifying:
Male, Elite, qualifying 1 (Top 20 to qualify): Amaury Pierron (FRA) 3:17.142, 1; Loic Bruni (FRA) at 0.154s, 2; Loris Vergier (FRA) at 0.244, 3. Leading NZers: Lachlan Stevens-McNab at 4.299s, 24; Sam Gale at 5.360, 35; Luke Wayman at 9.382, 57.
Qualifying 2 (top 10 to qualify): Tuhoto-Ariki Pene (NZL, MS Racing) 3:17.313, 1; Antoine Rogge (FRA) at 0.283, 2; Simon Chaplet (FRA) 1.179, 3. Other NZers to qualify: Luke Waymen (Continental Atherton) at 2.444, 7.
Other NZers: Sam Gale at 3.970s, 16; Toby Meek at 11.909, 44; Lachlan Stevens-McNab at 18.366, 51; Nico Arnold dnf; Angus Ferguson dnf.
Female, Elite: Myriam Nicole (FRA) 3:42.776, 1; Tahnee Seagrave (GBR) at 0.208, 2; Gracey Hemstreet (CAN) at 0.725, 3. Leading NZers: Sacha Earnest at 7.895, 10; Jess Blewitt at 12.856, 16;
Female Junior (Top 10 to qualify): Eliana Hulsebosch (NZL, Trek Factory) 3:50.773, 1; Rosa Zierl (AUT) at 1.798, 2; Aletha Ostgaard (RSA) at 5.704, 3. Also NZers: Bellah Birchall (High Country) at 5.824, 4; Indy Deavoll at 18.527, 8.
Male Junior: Till Alran (FRA) 3:17.885, 1; Oli Clark (NZL, MS Racing) at 0.884, 2; Max Alran (FRA) at 1.194, 3. Other NZers to qualify: Tyler Waite (Yeti Fox) at 5.881, 5; Jonty Williamson (Yeti Fox) at 7.765, 6; Rory Meek (Queenstown) at 8.186, 7; Malik Boatwright (Queenstown, Team High Country) at 10.020, 13.
Enduro elite men: Daniel Booker (AUS) 22:20.157, 1; Alex Rudeau (FRA) at 10.640, 2; Stawomir Lukasik (POL) at 17.725, 3. Also NZers: Charles Murray (Specialized Gravity) at 33.353, 8; Joe Millington at 38.371, 11; Matthew Walker (Pivot Factory) at 39.664, 14; Edward Masters (Pivot Factory) at 1:21.628, 33; Lachie Ross at 1:31.044, 37.
Elite Women: Ella Conolly (GBR) 25:22.107, 1; Morgane Charre (FRA) at 26.02, 2; Winni Goldsbury (NZL, Specialised Gravity) at 26.40, 3. Also NZers: George Swift (Yeti Fox) at 27.25, 7.