News
World Cup MTBO Teolo, Italy
Posted: 24/09/10
The last round of the World Cup MTBO series was held in Teolo, Italy on 17 – 20 September. Eight intrepid members of the GB team took part, Emily ‘need some sleep’ Benham, Lucy ‘need a new knee’ Harris, Helen ‘Planet X dude’ Clayton and Stephanie ‘newbie’ Fountain made up the female half, with Mark ;did you know I’ve got a blog?’ Stodgell, Ifor ‘tall, skinny and fast’ Powell, Mark ‘the legend’ Hayman and Andrew ‘BBC daffodil expert’ Windrum.//
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//The weekend comprised a sprint race on the Saturday, a middle distance on Sunday followed by an unusual format of a mixed team relay on the Monday. The terrain was hilly with a mixture of woodland on the steep valley sides, with vineyards and a scattering of olive groves in the lower slopes and valley bottoms. Cycling was allowed anywhere which meant that racers could risk cutting through vineyards to gain or lose precious seconds. Added to this was the wet weather at the start of the week making many of the paths muddy and difficult. The events promised to be exciting. //
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//The Sprint on Saturday proved no disappointment. The event started in a wine tasting lodge and quickly climbed up though woodland before plunging down through vineyards. The route choices were many and varied but the muddy conditions prevented very fast riding and an opportunity to read the map. Mark Hayman came in as first Brit showing that he has not lost the form that won him the British Long Championship back in 2007. A strong ride by Emily Benham brought her an enviable 7th place. Stephanie Fountain, her first ever international MTBO event, opted for the open event to gain experience and came in 4th, demonstrating plenty of potential for future races.//
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//The Middle distance was on similar terrain, but covered a much larger area with more height climbed and a lot of route choice. Ifor Powell, fresh from training for a month the in alps proved to be the strongest Brit bloke with a highly respectable 35th place. Emily Benham, consistent as ever came in 10th, she has a promising few years ahead of her, watch this space. Stephanie Fountain came 7th in the women’s open, she too is one to watch…//
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//The finale was the relay on the Monday. The team comprised of Andrew Windrum, a veteran relay flunker, Stephanie Fountain, her first event riding for GB, and Ifor Powell, who was also making a GB team debut in MTBO. The team’s objective to ride steady, smoothly and make no major mistakes causing disqualification was almost met. Andrew set off first and did a solid ride (unusually) and came in three or four minutes behind the leaders, handing over to Stephanie. She rode well but a puncture significantly delayed progress resulting in Ifor going out chasing the last but one rider. Fortunately, he too did a good ride and the GB team did not come last. //
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//The World Cup events are a fantastic opportunity for those wanting to race at an international level without the pressure of participating in a World Championship event. The choice of open and world cup events means there’s options for all abilities. Stephanie, in riding the open events, more than proved that she is capable of riding women’s elite and we hope that we will see her in more events in the future. Well done to all the team for a successful series of races. //
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