STAR-STUDDED CAST TO COMPETE FOR NATIONAL TITLES IN DUMFRIES AND GALLOWAY

STAR-STUDDED CAST TO COMPETE FOR NATIONAL

TITLES IN DUMFRIES AND GALLOWAY 

Mark Cavendish, Pfeiffer Georgi, Ethan Hayter, Anna Henderson, and Ben Swift have today been named amongst the riders set to compete for the coveted national champions jerseys at this year’s British National Road Championships, which will take place in Dumfries and Galloway from Thursday 23 – Sunday 26 June.

All five elite national champions from the 2021 championships in Lincoln – Georgi, Swift, Henderson, Hayter and Jo Tindley – will be competing in this year’s races, as the time-trial, circuit and road championships are brought together once again into an unmissable week of racing.

Time-trials

The championships begin with the time-trials on Thursday 23 June, which will be held at The Crichton in Dumfries, and the 2021 men’s podium of Hayter, Dan Bigham and James Shaw will all do battle once more over the 44.2km course.

They will be joined in the elite men’s category by six-time national time-trial champion Alex Dowsett, who has unfinished business after being forced to abandon last year’s time-trial due to illness.

In the elite women’s category, last year’s podium riders Henderson, Joss Lowden and Leah Dixon will all be returning, and will be joined by the reigning under-23 women’s time-trial champion Anna Shackley (below), who will be stepping up to the elite category.

In the under-23 categories, defending champion Leo Hayter, Lewis Askey and 2021 junior national time-trial champion Finley Pickering will all be ones to watch, while a strong women’s field will see elite national road race champion Georgi go up against the UCI Women’s WorldTeam duo of Abi Smith and Elynor Bäckstedt.

Please be aware access to The Crichton and surrounding areas will be impacted by this event on 23rd June. See below.

Circuit race

Jo Tindley secured a famous victory on her home roads in Lincoln last year and will look to defend her title on a technical circuit in Kirkcudbright, after a string of impressive performances in this year’s Tour Series. Her teammate and 2021 bronze medallist Corinne Side will be looking to make the podium again, while Meg Barker, Sophie Lewis, Emma Jeffers and Sammie Stuart all enter the race in fine form after wins at this year’s Tour Series. Jenny Holl will also take to the start line in Kirkcudbright, off the back of winning a European para-cycling tandem title with Sophie Unwin last month.

Harry Tanfield and Lewis Askey will each be hoping to better their podium finishes from last year, while Charlie Tanfield will be lining up alongside his brother. Olympic omnium champion Matt Walls is another one to watch, while junior time trial champion Joshua Tarling and junior road race champion Zac Walker will also be featuring. Tour Series sprint champion Matt Bostock is a hot favourite coming into the race, along with Matt Gibson and Scottish rider Finn Crockett who put in solid performances in the Tour Series.

Road race

Ben Swift will look to make it a hat-trick of national road race titles following victories in the previous two editions of the race, but he will face stiff competition from Mark Cavendish, who won his only national road race title on the event’s last visit to Scotland in 2013, and who famously matched Eddy Merckx’s total of 34 Tour de France stage wins last summer.

UCI WorldTeam riders Fred Wright, Owain Doull and Jake Stewart will also take to the start line in Castle Douglas, along with 2018 champion Connor Swift, Walls, and Ethan Hayter, who will be joined by his Ineos Grenadiers teammates Ben Tulett and Ben Turner.

Defending champion Georgi will be amongst the favourites in the women’s race, with Shackley, Smith and Henderson also likely to be in the frame.  Winner in 2019, Alice Barnes will be eyeing a return to the podium, while Josie Nelson will look to build on her breakthrough second place finish in Lincoln last year.

This year’s race is taking place in Dumfries and Galloway thanks to the support of EventScotland and Dumfries and Galloway Council.

You can find the full rider lists for this year’s championships here, and route information here. For information about opportunities to volunteer at the event please email eliteroad@britishcycling.org.uk.

Notes:

BUSINESS AND COMMUNITY CONSULTATION RE 23 JUNE

On Thursday 23 June the time trials will take place on a course that loops around The Crichton, Bankend and Glencaple. The time trials last all day starting from around 9.30am and the course roads are expected to be closed from 9.30am to 6.30pm to enable the time trials to take place safely. British Cycling will hold a number of Business and Community Consultation events in early June including here at The Crichton on Thursday 9 June. See What’s On for details.

ABOUT BRITISH CYCLING

British Cycling is the national governing body for cycling as recognised by the UCI – the international federation for the sport. Based in Manchester at the HSBC UK National Cycling Centre, British Cycling works across all levels and six disciplines of the sport (BMX, Mountain Bike, Cyclo-cross, Road, Track and Cycle Speedway), from providing the support and encouragement people need to get riding their bikes for the first time, to being home to the hugely successful Great Britain Cycling Team.

Continued success at the highest level is inspiring a boom in participation across the nation. There have never been more opportunities to ride a bike, be it for fun or sport, and British Cycling is at the heart of this growth. British Cycling also works hard to represent cyclists’ interests at all levels, including campaigning on important issues including road safety. As a membership organisation, British Cycling provides a suite of benefits and support to its members who currently number over 150,000. All membership revenue is invested back into cycling.

For more information, visit www.britishcycling.org.uk