BRITISH CYCLING
DOWNHILL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS 2016
FINALS
WORDS AND PHOTOGRAPHY // DAN HEARN
A grey morning met bleary eyed riders as practice began once again at Revolution Bike Park for finals day of the 2016 National Championships. The clouds didn't last, however, and it wasn't long before the sun was spilling through the trees and illuminating the root-infested trail below. It is not without some controversy that we move into finals day of the UK Downhill National Championships. Incredulous voices were heard discussing the removal of a root that was "too slippery", and the changing of tape towards the end of practice on Saturday. However, for the most part, the track remained every bit as challenging and tiring as before.
After some extremely tight racing, with just 4 seconds separating the top 10 riders, it was Greg Williamson who emerged victorious. Little mistakes meant big position drops, and this was certainly a track that caught a few out.
Greg Williamson has had a fantastic World Cup season so far, with two 6th place finishes in Cairns and Leogang, and a 7th in Fort William. A National Championship will surely top the pile of 2016 results. Rachel Atherton once again took to the top step of the podium and donned the National Champs jersey and asserted her dominance on the UK downhill scene.
RESULTS
Senior Men
1 - Greg Williamson
2 - Danny Hart
3 - Steve Peat
4 - Josh Bryceland
5 - Marc Beaumont
Senior Women
1 - Rachel Atherton
2 - Tahnée Seagrave
3 - Manon Carpenter
4 - Sophia Paull
5 - Lucy Drees
Junior Men
1 - Matt Walker
2 - Charlie Hatton
3 - Joe Breeden
4 - Kaos Seagrave
5 - Will Hart
Junior Women
1 - Aston Tutt
2 - Sumayyah Green
3 - Maddy Brown
4 - Meghan Harris
5 - Cairn Bell
MENTIONS:
2009 UCI DH World Champion
3 x World Cup Champ (2002, 2004 & 2006)
9 x British Champ
2 x European Champ
17 World Cup wins
52 World cup podiums
Etc etc etc etc etc............
But yeah, it's time for the Queen (or "watery tart") to tap his shoulders with a sword and put a formal "Sir" in front of his name.
His dip in form may be because he can't push the bike too hard, or rumour has it anyway....
Greg boy!!! You killed it! Let's step er up and bring the Scots to the top step!
Think the name your looking for is wee Nic Hitler.
Awkward..
Northern boys doing great. Greg 1st, henry 1st (with jet lag), Jamie 2nd. Old git 3rd (with a crash). Coles 4th. On a surface and track nothing like we are used to. 10 hours is one hell of a drive to get to a race.
i bet you'd love a slippy root up your arse you cocky little teddybear muncher