When was the last time there was a World Championship without an Atherton in there somewhere?
Rachel Atherton to miss out due to ongoing injury trouble. Tahnee Seagrave returns from injury to be sole Elite Women GB racer.
>>> Rachel Atherton out of World Cup with suspected ruptured Achilles
Great Britain Cycling Downhill Team for 2019 World Champs
Elite Men
Brendan Fairclough
Laurie Greenland
Danny Hart
Bernard Kerr
Matt Walker
Greg Williamson
Reece Wilson
Elite Women
Tahnee Seagrave
Junior Men
Jake Ebdon
Jamie Edmondson
Luke Mumford
Luke Williamson
Great Britain Cycling Cross-Country Team for 2019 World Champs
Elite Women
Annie Last
Isla Short
Elite Men
Grant Ferguson
Under-23 Women
Evie Richards
Under-23 Men
Frazer Clacherty
Sean Flynn
Cameron Orr
Junior Women
Harriet Harnden
Anna McGorum
Junior Men
Charlie Aldridge
Harry Birchill
British Cycling press release: Cross-Country
British Cycling has announced the eleven cross country mountain bikers who will travel to Mont-Saint-Anne in Canada to compete at the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships which take place from 28th August – 1st September.
Commonwealth and recently crowned national champion Annie Last has made selection for the elite women’s race along with Isla Short, while under-23 national champion Evie Richards will take to the start line in the under-23 event. In the men’s races, Frazer Clacherty showed great form by stepping up to take the elite men’s national champion title earlier this month and has been selected to ride in his age category of under-23 men at this world championships. He will be joined by team mates Sean Flynn and Cam Orr, while Grant Ferguson will represent Great Britain in the elite men’s category.
In the junior races, Charlie Aldridge and Harry Birchill have been selected as has Harriet Harnden who will be looking to improve on her bronze medal at last year’s world championships.
Speaking of selection, lead coach Simon Watts said: “With the Olympics drawing nearer, the world championships in Mont-Saint-Anne are an important opportunity to rack up more qualification points and the team we have selected reflects that.
“Annie has had a mixed season so far, with illness and misfortune affecting her world cup performances, however she can take confidence from the results she’s had at other races this year and also from the knowledge she won a silver medal on this course at the 2010 junior world championships.
“Evie has worked hard to come back from injury and is making remarkable progress, consistently finishing in second place at the world cups this season. The steep nature of the course will play to Evie’s climbing skills and, for similar reasons, will also suit Isla, who has impressed during her first year as a programme member.
“It was great to see Frazer step up and not only ride but dominate in the elite category at the national champions this year having had a difficult start to the season with an injury. Cam and Sean have both shown progression in their training and competition, and so these world championships are an opportunity for them to build on this and see where they are at against the best in the world.
“All three of the junior riders we have selected have excelled this season and I will be looking for them to cement this at the world championships.
“Finally, we will be entering a team into the mixed relay event and, thanks to the strength we have within the team across the categories, we stand a good chance of putting down a good performance to contribute to our all-important Olympic qualification campaign. The team names for the mixed relay will be confirmed nearer the time.”
British Cycling press release: 4X
British Cycling has today announced the ten riders who will represent the Great Britain Cycling Team at the UCI Four-Cross World Championships taking place in Val di Sole, Italy, from the 1st – 2ndAugust.
Reigning national champions Will Evans and Natasha Bradley have both made selection for this year’s world championships. British four-cross legend Scott Beaumont has also made selection along with, Charles Currie, Elliott Heap, Daniel Wagstaff, Connor Hudson and David Roberts for the elite men’s event. On the women’s side, Natasha will be joined by Megan Wherry and Courtney Abbiss, who is set to make her debut at this world championships.
Speaking of the selection, Michael Vickers, Four-Cross Co-ordinator for the Great Britain Cycling Team said: “This will be the fifth year in a row that Val di Sole has hosted the four-cross world championships, so it has become quite an iconic venue within the four-cross community.
“In the men’s race, Elliott Heap will be looking to improve on his fourth-place finish at last year’s event. Elliott, who has a solid history of multidisciplinary success, has a refreshing style of riding that has the potential to set him apart from the rest of the field. He’s relatively new to the discipline, but his creative lines through the corners combined with the past year of experience, should put him in good stead for a result on this course.
“Scott Beaumont has once again made selection for the team and brings plenty of experience with him, having won his first national four-cross title in 2008 and getting close to the world championship podium over the years. No doubt, Scott will be chasing that gold medal to add to his impressive palmares.
“On the women’s side, Natasha Bradley is having a great season so far, putting down some impressive results racing in the men’s category at national level and winning the women’s race at the ProTour Round One in Fort William. Natasha’s technical ability will be one of her key strengths and, having seen her finish second at last year’s world championships, I’m really looking forward to seeing how she gets on this year.
“Megan Wherry has performed consistently well this season, finishing on the podium at every round of the British Four-Cross Series and finishing second to Natasha at Fort William, and will be looking forward to her second world championships having crashed out last year. Similarly, Courtney Abbiss will be looking forward to her first world championship race and I think she will benefit a lot by being around the more experienced riders which will really help her development.
“Overall, we have selected a strong team for Val di Sole with some real medal hopes in both categories and, knowing the course, I think we can expect some really exciting racing in Italy.”