New generations of stars shine at Fort William
A new generation of downhill superstars made their mark on the World Cup circuit last weekend as thousands of spectators descended on Aonach Mor to catch the high-octane action.
The acclaimed Fort William UCI Mountain Bike World Cup lived up to its billing as one of the best sporting events in the country as Fort William welcomed the world’s best riders to Nevis Range.
The downhill finals on Sunday, June 2, made for an intense finish to the weekend as Britain’s Tahnee Seagrave and Frenchman Amaury Pierron raced to victory in front of a bumper crowd.
The competition saw 250 of the world’s top downhill riders battle it out over the course of the weekend; and with over a fifth of the field made up of British riders, the Fort William crowd had a great deal to cheer about in the sun. In a tantalizing women’s final, 22-year-old Londoner Seagrave secured a massive eight-second gap between herself and the rest of the field. Meanwhile, fellow Brit and five-time world champion Rachel Atherton put in a heroic performance to claw back third place after an early mechanical mishap meant she had to race almost the entire run without a bike chain.
The men’s event was also filled with upsets, as Highland rider and British downhill champion Greg Williamson sustained a puncture and US
downhill superstar, Aaron Gwin fell in the wooded area of the course. The events paved the way for the 22-yearold flying Frenchman, Amaury Pierron to scoop the win, as a new generation of riders made their mark on the competition.
Pierron, from Commercial Racing, said: ‘This is my first ever World Cup win and it feels amazing.
‘Fort William is the biggest event in downhill racing and there are so many people – it’s crazy. I was super happy to be on the podium with Loris and Troy – the new generation is coming.’
Twenty-two-year-old Scot Reece Wilson had the ride of his life taking a career-best fourth place which made him the first Scottish rider to finish in a podium position.
Ranked only 18th in the UK and qualifying in 26th place, he recorded a stunning time which left him sitting in the leader’s hot seat for almost an hour.
Lochaber rider and local hero Lachlan Blair put in a hugely impressive time in the final to claim 48th place, less than one year after suffering a serious leg break which ruled him out the whole of last season. Blair travels back to the place where he suffered that injury in Leogang, Austria, to compete in the next round of the World Cup this weekend.
There was also fierce competition in the junior rounds of the World Cup, where the men’s junior downhill event was won by Australian Kye A’Hern and the women’s by Valentina Holl.
Mike Jardine, of Rare management which organised the event, said: ‘This weekend was filled with amazing action and plenty of drama – exactly what we’ve come to expect from the spiritual home of downhill racing. We welcomed an estimated 20,000 visitors to the Nevis Range over the course of the weekend, who enjoyed the drama on-track and the festival atmosphere off-track in the pits and expo area.
‘It’s incredible to see such a love for downhill racing from both participants and fans alike.’
Results: Men’s Elite Downhill Final – 1 Amaury Pierron FRA; 2 Loris Vergier FRA; 3 Troy Brosnan AUS; Women’s Elite Downhill Final - 1 Tahnee Seagrave, GBR; 2 Myriam Nicole, FRA; 3 Rachel Atherton, GBR.
Men’s Junior Downhill Final: 1 Kye A’Hern, AUS. 2 Thilbaut Daprela, FRA; 3 Kade Edwards, GBR.
Women’s Junior Downhill Final: 1 - Valentina Holl, AUT; 2 Paula Zibasa, LAT; 3 Kaytlin Melvin, USA.