Sea Otter Classic, March 21-25 Results 

Downhill - Men:

1. Steve Peat (GB), GT, 1:27.257

2. Colin Bailey, 1:29.134

3. Greg Minnaar (SA), Global, 1:29.134

4. Kirt Voreis, Haro-Lee Dungarees, 1:29.958

5. Joel Panozzo, 1:30.235

6. Nathan Rennie (Aus), Yeti-Pearl Izumi, 1:30.334

7. Sean McCarroll (Aus), Global, s.t.

8. Brian Lopes, GT-Fox, 1:30.637

  Dual Slalom - Men

1. Brain Lopes (USA), GT-Fox

2. Wade Bootes (Aus), Trek-Volkswagen

3. Eric Carter (USA), Mongoose

Mountain Cross - Men

1. Brian Lopes (USA), GT/Fox

2. Sean McCarroll (AUS), Global Racing

3. Wade Bootes (AUS), Trek Volkswagen

4. Cedric Gracia (FRA), Volvo-Cannondale

1. Marla Streb (USA, Foes Azonic) 1'41.33"
2. Anne-Caroline Chausson (FRA, Volvo-Cannondale) 1'41.62"
3. Elke Brutsaert (USA, Schwinn) 1'41.64"
4. Tara Llanes (USA, Yeti) 1'42.20"
5. Katrina Miller (AUS, Jamis) 1'44.68"

Dual Slalom - Women 

1. Anne-Caroline Chausson (FRA, Volvo/Cannondale)
2. Missy Giove (USA, Global Racing)
3. Katrina Miller (AUS, Jamis)
4. Leigh Donovan (USA, Schwinn)

Mountain Cross - Women

1. Anne-Caroline Chausson (FRA, Volvo-Cannondale)
2. Tara Llanes (USA, Yeti)
3. Kristina Nicholas (USA, Razor Rock)
4. Leigh Donovan (USA, Schwinn)

ABA Winter Nationals Phoenix, AZ March 24-25

Laguna Seca, Calif (24-25 March, 2001)  - The racing premiere of the Global racing Team at the Mercury Sea Otter Classic was a mixture of sparkling riding and inspired performances. Global riders climbed the podium in each of the events they entered, as well as many other top ten results. Missy Giove took second in the dual slalom; Sean McCarroll took second in the mountain cross; and Greg Minnaar placed third in the downhill and fourth in the dual slalom! The Sea Otter Classic has become the traditional opener of the international mountain biking season. Sean McCarroll excelled in the electric action of the 4-up mountain cross, where he finished second. In the supercharged final he found himself back in fourth behind dual slalom world champ, Wade Bootes. But an inspired pass on a hard right hander put Sean onto the wheel of  Cedric Gracia, and the crowd went wild as “The Bomber” charged into second place around the final berm (Brian Lopes won it with sheer brilliance). Sean commented: “I definitely want to do more of these 4-up events! In the second half it was all about the power left in your legs and for the one behind it’s always easier to get motivated.” In the dual slalom Sean was eliminated in the second round by Brian Lopes, and in the downhill he was seventh. Missy Giove, just returning from her pre-season knee injuries, decided not to risk re-injury in the uncharted terrain of the daredevil mountain cross. In the dual slalom she beat Katrina Miller in the semi-final and narrowly lost to A-C Chausson in the final. Missy said: “It’s my first race back. The final was exciting, I never raced against Anne-Caroline in a dual event. I would like to do more dual and dual slalom this year.” Missy took her chances in downhill, crashed and finished 15th. Greg Minnaar hit top form in Sunday’s downhill with a third place. The mainly-flat course demanded pedalling power, which Greg always claims is his weakness. Even so, he thought he could have done better: “I have a bit of a cold and can’t breathe well with all this pedalling. Also my helmet moved so I could not see much for a while.” Greg qualified sixth in the dual slalom, kicked out Karim Amour in the second round and Kirt Vories in the third, then narrowly lost to Brian Lopes in the semi-final and to Eric Carter in the consolation final to finish fourth. He was the one of the few out there on a hardtail bike, an Orange MsIsle. In the mountain cross he qualified eighth and made it to the quarter-final. Mick Hannah is the junior on the team and was not scheduled to race in all the World Cup events. After his performance this weekend he is traveling everywhere! He won the first quarter-final against Brian Lopes. The “kids of the southern hemisphere” did not let Lopes off easy in the DS this time! Mick: “I had to touch the breaks somewhere but I can’t remember…” It was also his first dual slalom event ever! Mick came in ninth among all the big guys in downhill and qualified 11th in mountain cross. Marielle Saner had her best performance of the weekend in the downhill, where she got sixth. “I am satisfied. I made a mistake and lost speed just before the flat part so it could have been even better.” Marielle had the bad luck to meet Missy in the first round of the dual slalom: “It was my first time to race against a teammate, too bad only one of us got the chance to advance…” Markolf Berchtold’s highlight of the weekend was the downhill. He was 12th in the strong international field. He said: “I had a good start and ended in a bad line at the double jump in the middle of the course. This was a good start of the season.” Markolf also qualified for both dual slalom and mountain cross but did not make it into the second rounds. Naoki Idegawa was happy with his clean and flawless downhill run which took him to a 24th spot. Daisaku Kaneko started his season well with a 28th spot in the downhill, enough to find motivation for the training weeks to follow before the next races. Cesar Rojo had the kind of week he would wish on nobody. He crashed hard on the Friday’s mountain cross practice, and although he walked away with no broken bones he was not fit for competition.

Am 30. März startet die Todtnauer Flugschau in die Saison 2001. Der MTB FUN PARK ist bis Mitte Mai, Freitag, Samstag, Sonntag + Feiertags von 9:30 -17:00 geöffnet. Ab Mitte Mai täglich. Rennstrecke wie bekannt fertig, Freeride wird momentan umgebaut.

Veranstalter:Thüringer Motoradtage GmbH, Ausrichter: RAD-ART racing, Peter Effenberger (Veranstalter Downhill in Ilmenau), Ort: Erfurt Messe Halle 2, Anlage: Startrampe = 5m hoch, Sprunghügel = Double, Zeit: Sonntag 18.03.2001, Training 10.00 - 12.00Uhr anschließend, Wettkampf ab 12.30Uhr, Wertungdurchgänge je nach Anzahl der Starter 2 oder 3, Startklassen: MTB und BMX starten zusammen, Startgeld:10,-DM, Ergebnisermittlung: db Messung - Publikum, Preisgeld:                     

1. 1000,-DM

2.   500,-DM

3.   300,-DM

Meldung: Peter Effenberger, Tel.03677 / 84 22 25, Fax.03677 / 84 22 35,Funk 0172 /3602143, Mail: peter.effenberger@web.de

Der Dirtjumpcontest findet im Rahmen der Erfurter Motorrad, Fahrrad und Freizeitmesse statt. An diesem Wochenende werden ca. 20.000 Besucher erwartet. Das Training ist auch schon am Samstag möglich. Für weitere Fragen bitte an Peter Effenberger wenden.

The Riders

Rich Barlow: 2000  was  Richards 1st season in the Pro ranks. He scored a hand full of top 10 results  on the domestic scene beating some of the established UK riders. He also qualified for a couple of World Cup race's . He has been competing in the winter series back in the UK and won the overall last weekend . Rich has lots to come for 2001. Stuart Tompson: Stuart is current British Junior Downhill , Dual and Downhill series Champion .He is fresh from the Scottish Highlands. After years of  Motorbike trials riding Stuart has brought those skills into his Mountain biking. He and Richard will be competing in the European World Cup races in 2001 and depending on results may go to the states to race. It will be Stuart's 1st pro season and I expect great results. Marc Beaumont: Marc is a new addition to Royal coming from the youth ranks where he was on the podium every week. He will compete in the junior category in 2001 and we expect lots more  podium finishes and even an overall title. Nibbs Kellet: Nibbs races in the vet category and in 2000 he racked up an impressive year with only 2 second place finishes and the rest were all 1st places. With this record we are assured podium appearances every week and good exposure in the mag's. Jamie Tompkins. Jamie will be Co-sponsored by Royal in 2001 and is a hope full for being the UK's 1st World Champion in the junior ranks. All 4 of these boys are excellent Dirt jumpers and are fully approachable by any magazine. All the riders are hand picked by Steve Peat himself.

The weather is always a big part of BMX, and the last few weeks in California made it look as if this NBL race may not even happen. But with a few nice days this week, a lot of track maintenance from the Sun Valley staff, and a beautiful weekend, the NBL race was a great success! Stop #3 of the NBL pro tour was a great weekend and the huge AA pro class made for some great racing. Here is how the Double A Marketing Riders in attendance finished up in the main events. Jamie Staff returned from England on Friday night and proceeded to keep on flying once he got to the NBL race. After 24 hours of traveling, Jamie was race ready. Jamie placed 2nd in both AA and Open on Saturday. Come Sunday morning, with a little more sleep Jamie was up to full speed and proceeded to rule the AA class, placing 1st. A scary crash in Pro Open gave him last, but he was OK! Thomas Allier can't be stopped! Once again, Thomas took a huge win in AA on Saturday, as well as a 7th in Pro Open. Come Sunday, Thomas was once again victorious, this time in Pro Open and he also finished 3rd in AA. This makes 3 AA wins in NBL so far for 2001. Christophe Leveque can sometimes make the incredibly fast pro class look slow. He did just that in Sun Valley with a huge win in Pro Open on Saturday. On Sunday, Christophe was in both the AA and Open main but a crash in each held him back to 6th in AA and 5th in Open. Warwick Stevenson has been riding super fast in 2001 and Burbank was no exception. On Sunday, Podge was in Both the AA and Pro Open mains. In AA, Warwick powered his way around the track for a huge 2nd place finish and then he backed it up with a 3rd in Open. Randy Stumpfhauser has been bringing home some great finishes in 2001, and Sun Valley added up a few more for him. On Saturday and Sunday, Stumpy placed 2nd in Pro Cruiser. Matt Hadan once again proved his speed and agility as he romped on the pro cruiser class with a 4th place finish on Saturday and Sunday. Florent Boutte has been training hard this season with Thomas Allier and it showed off in Sun Valley. Florent was in the Pro Open main on Sunday where he placed 6th.

Race #5 on the ABA Pro tour takes the riders out to El Paso, TX for the South West Nationals. A long track and usually windy conditions are ready to greet the pros and make it that much tougher for them. With 16 AA Pros in Attendance, it made for some tight racing. but as usual, the true Pros were atop the podium. Here is how the Double A Marketing pros who were in the main event finished up:Wade Bootes  keeps on rolling with the good finished and El Paso sure went his way. On Saturday, Wade got a little bump from his friend Big Mac and had to fight back to place 2nd overall. On Sunday Wade was doing the pushing, as he pushed his way to 1st in AA. Wade is looking very strong in BMX this year, and if he keep this up, it will be very interesting come season end. Robert MacPherson has been a busy guy lately. Signing a sponsorship deal with To-Fiteness food products, Robert has had to help taste test some of their products, but they sure must make him go fast as he was right behind Wade in the AA main on Sunday with a 2nd place. Saturday was a different story, as Robert was hit with a huge gust of wind in the main that caused him to crash and to be knocked out for a few minutes. This guy sure does seem to come back from an injury stronger that before.

Puolanka, Finland, March 2001 – Team Be One Down Hill will be equipped with Sinisalo clothing this season. The well known Finnish company – famous for manufacturing motocross and enduro clothing since 1974 - make their first step in world championship mountainbike racing. Sinisalo built a quality reputation and image in motocross and is now aiming for a position in the extreme world of Down Hill and Dual. “We are very happy with this deal. As a top brand we want the best riders and Team Be One has them. Together we developed a line of pants, shorts, shirts and gloves that will make the team look professional and colourful”, says Sinisalo marketing director Harry van Hemmen.  “We have won a number of world championships in motocross and enduro with riders like Jeremy McGrath and Greg Albertijn and now we look forward to great results in downhill racing. The deal with Be One will put us on the map and it will help us develop specialised products. I’m looking forward to see the Be One riders in action across the Globe”. In the first race of the season in Sondershausen (Ger), where De Bever got second, Team Be One had their first experience with the Sinisalo clothing. “Clothing is very important for us riders. I was really satisfied with the Sinisalo clothing in my first race of the season”, De Bever said after his final run in Sondershausen. For bas is this not the first time that he is using Sinisalo equipment. Back in the day when he was racing BMX bas had Sinisalo as one of his personal sponsors.

OSM is stoked to announce the 2001 Planet X World Games in London, July 28 to August 5. OSM have been running the Planet X Xtreme Games in Australia since 1998.  Last year's Planet X Xtreme Games in Melbourne was the first in a new world series to be broadcast to over 300 million homes around the world. In 2001, we have evolved the event, growing the prize purse to over US$300,000, inviting competitors from all over the globe whilst continuing with the massive worldwide TV exposure. The London Games will include:

• Skateboard - street & vert

• Freestyle BMX - street, vert, dirt and flatland

• Inline Skate - street & vert

• Freestyle Moto X

• Wakeboard - Freeride

• Street Luge - Mass & Super Mass

• Downhill Skate - Mass

• Kitesurf

• Skysurf

Planet X World Games TV Coverage: OSM have formed a partnership with the world's biggest sports TV distributor TWI to produce and distribute TV coverage of the event to around 300 million homes worldwide. Good news for you and your sponsors. Qualifying for the Planet X World Games: The Planet X Xtreme Games in Australia is the qualifying event for the Planet X World Games in London.  The top competitor from each country .In each event automatically qualifies for the Planet X World Games is highest-ranking UK BMX vert competitor, highest-ranking German skateboard street competitor etc. All other positions will be filled by invitation to complete country listings in each event as follows:

• UK 3

• Nth America 3

• Australia 3

• Germany 2

• Italy 2

• France 2

• Spain 2

• Other Euro 1

• Sth America 2

• Asia 2

They are confirming competitors now, so if you are interested in competing at the Planet X World Games in London, make sure you let them know.  BelindaW@onlinesports.com.au or by phone on +612-9977-7433 (during Aussie business hours).

BMX:

Florent BOUTTE (Fra): 24 years old, Elite French Champion 1999 & 2000 in 20 & 24", European Elite Championship 24" 2000, 2^nd European Elite Championship 2000, 7^th World Elite Championship 2000, 4^th at UCI ranking.  

Martin MURRAY (UK): 22 years old, Elite men, English Elite Champion 1999, 2^nd .Elite UK championship 2000, 4^th at the Urban Games Dirt Jumping.  

Denis LABIGANG (Fra): 29 years old, Elite men, World Cup Elite Champion 1998, 6^th place at the World Championship 1999, 5^th at the European Elite Championship 2000 and team manager,  

Roger RINDERKNECHT (Switz): 19 years old, Elite men, Junior Swiss Champion 1998 & 1999, Elite Swiss Champion 2000, 4th at the Elite European Championship 2000,

Marcus BLOOMFIELD (UK): 22 years old, Elite men Several time Expert British Champion, 5^th at the UK Elite Championship 2000, 3^rd UK Elite Championship 24" 2000,

Tamme LUKAS (Czech): 22 years old, Several time European Elite finalist.

Thierry VANDENKERCKHOVE (Fra): 21 year old, 3rd at the World Cup 98 in Junior, 11 at the French Elite Championship 2000,

Elodie AJINCA (Fra): 22 year old, Elite women, Elite French Champion 1999 & 2000, Junior European Champion 1999, 4th place at the Junior World Championship, 4th at the European Elite Championship 2000 and 8th at the Elite World Championship 2000,

Szilard SZURDOK (Switz): 28 years old, Elite men, 3rd at the Swiss Elite Championship,

Urs KROPF (Switz): 25 years old, Elite men, 4th at the Swiss Championship,

Alexis AJINCA (Fra): 13 years old, 3rd place at the World championship 1999, 2nd at the French championship 2000 (injured for the rest of the season),

Axel ALLETRU (Fra): 11 years old, 8th at the European Championship 1999, 2nd at the European Championship 2000.

Tommy JOOS (Switz): 12 years old, 3rd European Championship 1996, Swiss Cup winner 96& 98, 3rd at the Swiss Championship 2000.

Alex MORRIS (UK): 11 year old, 7th UK national Championship.

Fabian MÜLLER (Switz): Flatlander

Dionys FREI (Switz): Dirt Jumper

Hannes ERB (Switz): Pipe & Dirt Jumper

The European 2001 BMX Race Team’s official sponsors include Diamondback, Dainese, Maxxis, ATI, Smith, Time, Bell, Titec, KMC and FSA.

MTB Dual Slalom & Down Hill:

For this 2001 year Diamondback decided to come back in the Dual and Down Hill scene with Karim Amour. Then Watch out for Karim on all the Dual race all around the world… Karim Amour, 25 year old Mr. love is not only a good racer but also a real show man. 5th at the World Cup DUAL 1999 ( Maribor (Slovenia) : 1er, Squaw Valley (USA) : 3eme, Kaprun (Austria) : 5eme), Winner of the Avalanche Cup 1999, Winner of the Avalanche Cup of Lyon 2000, Winner of the Avalanche Cup of Métabief 2000, 3rd European Championship Dual 2000, 4th World Cup dual 2000 (Italy), 5th World Cup dual 2000 (USA), 5th World Cup dual 2000(Austria), 3rd Masters D’Avoriaz and 2nd Oxbow MX 2000 . Karim's program will be all the European World Cup, the Avalanche Cup, the French & European Championship but also all the UK national series with. The European 2001 Dual Slalom Team’s official sponsors include Diamondback, Dainese, Marzocchi, Maxxis, Fox racing shox, KMC Titec and FSA.

MTB Freeride

Franck ROMAN:

This French guy with his head completely shaved who was World Champion in BMX few

years ago, who astonished everybody with his radical style, who was the king of huge slide

and jump that everybody scared! This man who crashed and had mechanic problem when

everybody was sure of his victory ... Anyway panache, spectacle and emotion is Franck

Roman. Franck Roman is ready to come back for more freeride and Downhill event for

this2001 season. Franck Roman's sponsors include Diamondback, Dainese,

Marzocchi and Adidas.

The "MIAS" TEAM: Diamondback cosponsors this team for 3 years now.

The riders of this team belong to the best extreme freeriders of the world:

Christophe Morera

Mr Lionel Sequera,

Mr Jerome Berniere,

Mr Thierry Bernard,

Mr Julien Bottella,

Mr Antoine Bottella,

Ludovic Guilloux (for Motocross Dirt Jumping)

MTB Trial

Thibaut Marriaux: Thibaut is not only racing, he is always studying and he participated to

the conception of his bike. Thibaut is among the best riders in the world (1998, #5 in World

Trial Championship 98, 2nd place in Europe Trial Championship 98, 9th place in the world

Championship with a thumb broken 99, 3rd place at the Sea Otter Classic in San-Francisco

(USA) 99). But he like over all to do the show during his races.

It’s why he likes to participate to several show during the year (Demonstration at the Trial

Masters Motorcycle Show for 30000 people at Bercy stadium 98, Bike 99 show of Paris,

Urban tour show 99, MBUK road show 99, Shedar, International indoor of Grenoble 99...).

No gravity law is his policy. Thibaut Marriaux's sponsors include Diamondback,

Dainese.

MONTEREY, Calif. - Boosted off-road and fun riding programs for the 2001 Mercury Sea Otter Classic powered by SRAM include two head-turning new events: the SoBe Mountain Cross 4-up contest; the VeloNews Speed Trials; an old favorite, the Mountain Bike Magazine MTB Fun Ride; and a bright new star, the Bicycling Magazine Road Fun Ride. In the background to these four events, road teams such as Mapei Quickstep, Lotto Addeco, Mercury Viatel and United States Postal Service will be disputing the Robert Talbott Elite Road Stage Race. Mountain biking's giants such as Subaru Specialized, Volvo Cannondale and Gary Fisher will be vying for honors in the Seagate Pro/Elite MTB Stage Race. These events, along with the host of amateur category events taking place, make up a total of 161 classes of cycling activity. Even seasoned sports reporters are taken aback and sometimes a little bewildered by the scale of it all in their first Mercury Sea Otter Classic. The four listed below are a selection of fun and spectacular events that are new or modified. SoBe Mountain Cross, Finals Sunday, 25 March, 2001 (New) First seen at the Glen Helen, CA, MX National in 1999, now this off-road racing craze has landed in Otterville! Current National DH Champion Eric Carter has designed the course. Big air will be the theme for this event, which is partly laid out on the Laguna Seca MX track. Four riders race at a time; 32 men and 8 women qualify for Sunday's Finals. Each big air jump will have transitions or alternative routes. Stand back and watch the fun! Entry fees: $40 (after 9 March $50). Bicycling Magazine Road Fun Ride, Sunday, 25 March, 2001 (New) 2001 marks the first year of the Bicycling Magazine Road Bike Fun Ride. It is 26 miles of clear, traffic free roads; beautiful vistas, wonderful panoramas; climbs worth bragging about, and ripping descents. Top pro athletes will join fun riders on this non-competitive family fun ride with rest stops, raffle prizes and full support along the way. Short cut routes are there for the weary, and young riders are advised to avoid the long final climb up Barloy Canyon Road. 39x26 gears are recommended. Entry fees: $15 (after 9 March $20). if accompanied by an adult. VeloNews Speed Trials, 24 & 25 March, 2001 (New) Get ready to rumble! Speed Trials makes its Mercury Sea Otter Classic debut on Saturday and Sunday afternoons. Two riders race side-by-side on identical courses over the most insane obstacles imaginable! On Saturday afternoon Expert riders test their skills over sandpits, gaps, bridges, teeter-totters, and narrow beams. On Sunday a gathering of international talent will tackle the same Speed Trials course. The event format used here will be presented to the International Cycling Union as the model for consideration as a national and world championship level event. Entry fee: $30 (after 9 March $40) Mountain Bike Magazine MTB Fun Ride, 10am, Saturday, 24 March, 2001 (Modified) 14 miles of clearly marked, beautiful, green cross-country riding. There is full support, snacks, drinks - and a few pleasant surprises. In response to popular demand, for 2001 a new - more challenging - course has been set. This includes more miles, more hills, and more single track. In addition to the increased challenges of the course, riders are now offered authorized short cuts to provide an easy way home should the young ones have had their fill of cross country riding. The ride ends with the traditional Mercury Sea Otter Fun Ride awards, prizes, and zaniness. Entry fee: $15 (after 9 March $20); kids under 12 ride free if accompanied by an adult. The Mercury Sea Otter Classic, powered by SRAM will be broadcast on OLN every night, April 23-27, 8-10 pm ET & PT; 9-11pm MT & CT. Athletes are invited to call our event hotline +1 650/306-1414 with entry enquiries, and everybody is welcome at our great new web site www.seaotterclassic.com.

The BMX Freestyle World Championship will take place from July 11th until July 15th in Toulouse, on the heavenly site of the Sport and Leisure Basis of la Ramée. The company HURRICANE, which organises since four years the biggest european alternative sports event, the PALAVAS FISE, has decided to deeply commit itself in BMX. The schedule: hundreds of national and international riders will confront each other in dirt, street, flat, ramp and mini-ramp events, divided up into 4 categories (professionals, experts, masters and under 16). The best riders of each discipline will share a Prize Money of $25 000. The structures will be the ones of the infamous FISE (International Festival of Extreme Sports), with the biggest European street area, the 18 meters large ramp, a flat area of 600m², dirt jumps built by riders, and a mini-ramp especially created on this occasion by Daniel Mini. PRACTICAL INFOS Accomodation for riders: Campsite open on July 8th at night, tents are not provided. For hotels, a full list will be coming very soon. Catering: refreshment stalls and sandwiches for lunch. Fast (warm) food for dinner. Pre-inscription: Masters, Experts, under 16 200 FRF / $30, Pros 350 FRF / $50 Pre-inscription is possible during the FISE (April 7-15, 2001 à Palavas) Inscription on the site:  Masters, Experts, under16 400 FRF / $60, Pros 700 FRF / $100, ORGANISATION - INFOS & REGISTRATION FOR RIDERS, ALL MEDIAS & SPONSORS, SARL Hurricane Event Infoline 00 33 (0)4 67 40 15 35 Mail: worldbmx2001@hotmail.com INFOS FOR FOREIGN RIDERS & MEDIAS, Lionel Cardoso, Infoline 00 33 (0)1 60 20 53 83, Mail freshb@chello.fr

3./4.race Spindler Mlyn 2. 6. 2001and 3. 6. 2001 Velo Klub Spindler Mlyn, 54351 Spindler Mlyn

5./6. race and CZ-championship  Bozí Dar 18. 8. 2001and 19. 8. 2001 Obecní úÞad BoÏí Dar Ing. Jan Horník, 36262 Bozí Dar, tel.: 0164/915153

7./8. race/Final  BystÞice pod Hostinem 22. 9. 2001and 23. 9. 2001 Sport Bulis Pavel Bulis, Obchodní ulice 1604, 76861 BystÞice pod Host˜nem, tel.: 0635/379260

International Indoors of Tours 24 & 25 of February

by Denis Labigang

Last weekend took place in Tours the best and biggest indoor race of the year in Europe. Why?

• Because the track was perfect, fast and technical,

• Because there was 1184 riders from 10 different counties

• Because there was 74 Elite riders and 6 US pro riders

• Because there was about 10000 people in total for the two days

• Because there was 310 riders for the Saturday open race

• Because there was a perfect organization and timing

Florent Boutte, the winner of last year came specially from the USA to try to keep his title. For him it was his first race with the Diamondback colors in Europe and he was motivated to show to the French public and Diamondback what his is able to do before to go back in USA. At the Saturday Open race (310 rider, start with 1/64 finals), our youngest Elite men find the way to the final but crash in this one inside a collective crash in the first turn, and finished 7. Florent Boutte and Thierry Vandenkerckhove crash in semi final disappointed but ready for the official race of the Sunday. Sunday, Florent Boutte and Denis Labigang reached the final of the big Elite men race after an incredible semi final of the two Diamondback riders finishing 1 and 2. In the final although Denis Labigang was at the outside of the gate (line 8) he started in 3^rd position and keep this position till the third turn when he tried to overtake for the second place but was squeezed in the inside and lost all his speed for the rest of the race and then finished in a 6^th position. During this moment, Florent Boutte did a really bad start and was placed 8 at the first turn, As usually, Florent overtook one by one all the riders and almost the first one. Then in this exciting elite men final Florent finished side by side with the leader, but stay at the 2^nd place for only some centimeters behind the winner Jason Richardson, the USA pro rider. Even if Florent finished 2^nd and first European rider at this race, he show to the public how he is able to overtake his competitors with his incredible manual technique on the jump. Elodie Ajinca, the Elite women rider won easily her semi final but crash in the final finishing at a 7^th place.