Elite Women: Meshy Holt does it again
Well, I watched her win both the Elite time trial and the road race last year cause the Elite Nationals were hosted by my club.
This year Melissa Holt has taken a double again!
The men's road race is later this morning - I have high hopes for Jeremy Yates. He won the road race nationals in October and has racked up a few more wins in the national points series this country has for the road. He is from "my town" and rides with "my club". (Who me? Name-drop? Never!)
Holt scores double double in RaboPlus Elite road cycling championships
http://www.bikenz.org.nz/Article.aspx?Mode=1&ID=4007
10/01/2009 9:50:44 p.m.
Cambridge rider Melissa Holt made it a unique double double when she won the RaboPlus national roach cycling championship in Te Awamutu today.
Holt followed up her victory in yesterday’s time trial but out-sprinting a small but select field to claim the women’s road title over 120kms circuit.
The former New Zealand representative also won both the time trial and road race last year in Hawkes Bay.
Her victory was even more special in that she has been based back in New Zealand for more than a year and concentrated on the Ironman triathlon last year, winning her age group in New Zealand and going on to place in the top 10 in her age group at the world championships in Hawaii.
“I am naturally stoked,” Holt said after her win today. “I don’t know where the sprinting legs came from today. “My Waikato team really worked hard for me today and did a great job.”
Holt won in 3:36.26, outsprinting Nelson’s Karen Fulton and Christchurch’s Tracy Clark in the sprint into Te Awamutu after four laps of a circuit near Kihikihi.
Auckland’s Marina Dujnvak repeated her aggressive approach that she showed in last year’s race, leading Britta Martin and Tara Ellerton away on the break after 20km. She pushed out to two minutes after two laps and extended it to three minutes before the Waikato riders, led by former Olympic rower Sonia Waddell, turned up the heat and whittled away the lead.
They were caught with 20k remaining and a number of breaks all came to nothing with the peloton involved in a bunch sprint.
Holt managed to grab the best wheel and launch herself to the win by jut two seconds from the chasing bunch led by Fulton and Clark from her Waikato team-mates Emma Petersen and Waddell, who again impressed after a strong showing in the time trial.
Favourite Joanne Kiesanowski finished in the bunch in eighth place, after earlier being awarded the BikeNZ’s 2008 road cyclist of the year honours for her eighth placing in the world championships and strong showing at Beijing.
Results, RaboPlus elite road women’s road race, 120km:
Melissa Holt (Waikato BOP) 3:36.26, 1; Karen Fulton (Star & Garter Tasman) 3:36.28, 2; Tracy Clark (Canterbury) same time, 3; Emma Petersen (Waikato BOP) same time, 4; Sonia Waddell (Waikato BOP) same time, 5.
Elite Mens and Womens Road Time Trial Results
This was another great day. Jeremy Vennell is also Hawkes Bay (and like Jeremy Yates riding in the road race today, Vennell rides in our club and trains with my partner and sons sometimes) and he comprehesively won by over 20 seconds!
It was a slow day - incredible heat on Friday right across the country. In some parts of NZ they closed roads because the tar had melted so much!
Vennell, Holt claim time trial titles at RaboPlus cycling championships
http://www.bikenz.org.nz/Article.aspx?Mode=1&ID=4005
9/01/2009 7:49:01 p.m.
Hawkes Bay professional Jeremy Vennell has taken out the time trial honours at the RaboPlus national road cycling championships in Te Awamutu today.
Vennell, who races for Team Bissell in Europe, edged out Atlanta Olympian Robin Reid to take the men’s honours.
He clocked 57:25 on the 40km undulating terrain to win by 22 seconds from Reid (Star and Garter Tasman) with his fellow Nelson clubmate Chris Nicholson, the former Olympic speed skater, third in an impressive 59:19.
Cambridge rider Melissa Holt successfully defended her title in a top ride in the 25km elite women’s race. Holt, who will defend her road race title tomorrow, has been concentrating on Ironman triathlon in 2008 where she qualified and raced the world championship in Hawaii.
She clocked 38:34 to win the time trial by nearly a minute from fellow Waikato rider Sonia Waddell, the former Olympic rower, who greatly impressed in her first national championships. Southland’s Dale Tye was third.
Taranaki’s Michael Torckler took out the under-23 men’s honours by just four seconds from Waikato’s Ryan Wills.
Results:
RaboPlus Elite Road National time trial:
Elite men, 40km: Jeremy Vennell (Hastings) 57.25, 1; Robin Reid (Nelson) 57.47, 2; Chris Nicholson (nelson) 59.19, 3.
Under-23 men, 40km: Michael Torckler (New Plymouth) 59.55, 1; Ryan Wills (Waikato) 59.59, 2; Matthew Sillars (Auckland) 1:01.10, 3.
Elite women, 25km: Melissa Holt (Cambridge) 38.34, 1; Sonia Waddell (Hamilton) 39.32, 2; Dale Tye (Invercargill) 39.51, 3.
