Reigning HSBC UK | National Trophy champion Beth Crumpton says she expects the ‘strong group’ of current domestic riders to produce an entertaining battle to take her title when this year’s cyclo-cross season gets under way.
Having signed for Belgian team Tarteletto-Isorex, Crumpton’s focus will be on continental races, though she plans to compete in the national trophy when her schedule allows.
The first of six rounds takes place in Derby on the weekend of September 21 and 22, and Crumpton believes that the standard on the women’s side is getting better and better.
She said:
“The overall standard of girls racing this year is ever-increasing, and the under-23 and junior ranks are full of exciting young talent. I think big competition will come again from both Anna Kay and Ffion James, both of whom won rounds last year and have had impressive international results, but there is a strong bunch of girls snapping at their heels and it wouldn’t surprise me to see them in the mix either.
“It's great to see that women's cross is full of young talent because that's what's needed to continue to inspire the next generation.”
From a personal point of view, Crumpton is now looking to push on, having completed her studies earlier this year and made the move to a continental team.
Of her own development, she added:
“I’ve taken a step back from juggling lots of disciplines this year and just focussed on my preparation for the forthcoming cyclo-cross season, as it can be difficult to tailor specific training blocks when racing continuously. I like to think of myself as a good all-rounder and able to switch well between disciplines, but I’m excited to see how my preparation solely focusing on cross this season has gone.
“My big goal for the next season is aiming for some top tens in Belgium and the HSBC UK | National Cyclo-cross Championships in January. The championships are in Shrewsbury, so it’s local for me and always one of my biggest goals of the season.
“I think it’s important to mix up domestic racing with international competition, as the style of racing is different. Therefore I always enjoy racing in the national trophy and even at the smaller league such as the West Midlands Cyclo-cross League, which is where it started for me, so it’s nice to support the races that the organisers commit a lot of time to putting on and see familiar faces.”
Two familiar faces who will be missing from the British racing scene going forward are Helen Wyman and Nikki Brammeier, two stalwarts of women’s cyclo-cross who have both announced their retirements in recent months.
Crumpton believes that the two have left the discipline in an extremely healthy position.
She added:
“Both of those riders have inspired the next generation of girls. They’ve shown that you can pave your own path for a career in this sport, and what they have done has inspired a big group of young riders, which puts Great Britain in a promising position.
“Evie Richards has already picked up an elite World Cup victory and under-23 world titles in the discipline, and that in turn will also encourage and inspire the next group of young and aspiring cyclo-cross girls.”
