Dominant wins for Ferguson and Grindley at Round 6 of Youth Circuit Series in London 2-day

Dominant wins for Ferguson and Grindley at Round 6 of Youth Circuit Series in London 2-day

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Cat Ferguson and Sebastian Grindley claimed Youth A victories in Round 6 of the National Youth Circuit Series at London 2-day, while Melanie Rowe and Leon Atkins were crowned winners in the Youth B races.

Youth A Girls

Cat Ferguson (Storey Racing) took the first stage win in the one lap prologue of Redbridge Cycling Centre, clocking 3:04.66 with a very strong ride that set a precedent for her domination over the weekend. Isabel Mayes (JRC-INTERFLON Race Team) came in second place, four seconds behind, while Erin Boothman (East Kilbride Road Club) finished third.

It was a quiet start to the second stage hour long race, before Ferguson took the first time bonus with a brilliant sprint. Lucy Benezet Minns (VC Londres) went put in a big attack to go solo with five laps to go, which saw her awarded the combativity award, but was caught with a lap and a half left. Ferguson took another time bonus ahead of Imogen Wolff (Shibden Cycling Club) and managed to also get one over her in the bunch sprint, while Boothman took third again.

Sunday saw the riders travel to the Cyclopark in Kent for the 30-minute sprint stage. The race started chaotically with a crash on the first lap, reducing the pace of the bunch. Mari Porton (Halesowen A & CC) put in a strong attack, gaining her the combativity award, but went nowhere, while Arabella Blackburn (Deeside Thistle CC) won the time bonus. Ferguson took another win, while Porton finished second and Blackburn third in a bunch finish.

The final stage saw Ferguson again take the win to secure herself the overall champion, while Rebecca Gardiner (Lee Valley Youth Cycling Club) finished second on the stage, and Wolff in third.

Wolff finished second on the overall GC, while Blackburn completed the podium in third.

Youth A Boys

Sebastian Grindley (North Cheshire Clarion) took the first stage win in an incredible time of 2:43.30 ahead of William Gilbank (Lee Valley Youth Cycling Club) and Henry Hobbs (Welwyn Wheelers CC) – with less than half a second between second and third place.

Stage two saw an early break of four riders, while Gilbank made a huge effort to bridge the gap, earning him the combativity award. Just as Gilbank made it over, the chasing bunch caught up to bring it all back together. Max Hinds (Evolution Racing Academy) and Oli Dawson (RTD-J’sCycleShack) went off the front but were caught. An opportunist break in the closing laps saw Ollie Boarer (FlandersColorGalloo) take the win, while James Kinrade (Team RL360 Isle of Man) came second, and Joe Watkins-Wilson (North Cheshire Clarion) finished third.

Stage three started with frequent attacks early on, before Elliot Rowe (Deeside Thistle CC) and Finlay Tarling (FlandersColor Galloo) managed to gain 10 seconds on the bunch. Grindley and Will Slater (Backstedt Bike Performance RC) attempted to get across but were about eight seconds off the pace. Rowe outsprinted Tarling for first, while Grindley crossed the line in third over Slater.

The final stage saw disaster for Tarling as he suffered a puncture early on and spent most of the race chasing. Dawson and Grindley attacked off the front of the bunch, with Rowe attempting to catch them before being caught. Dawson took the stage win, while Grindley’s second secured him the overall GC. Adam Murray (East Kilbride Road Club) took third, winning the bunch sprint.

Dawson took second overall, while Boarer finished in third.

national youth circuit series london 2day

Youth B Girls

Anna Lloyd (VC Londres) won the prologue for the Youth B girls in 3:17.71. Mabli Phillips (Maindy Flyers CC) took second, three seconds off the pace, while Melanie Rowe (Deeside Thistle) came in third.

The afternoon saw the girls complete 50 minutes of the circuit, with Rowe taking the win from a small group sprint, which also saw her take the overall lead. Lloyd finished just behind in second, while Megan Cherry (Origin Race Team) took third. Phillips, who came down in sixth, was awarded the combativity award for her great attacks.

Cherry took another win in the half hour sprint stage with a bunch finish on Sunday. Zoe Roche (WXC World Racing) took second on the same time, while Rowe finished third.

The final 45-minute stage saw the bunch stay together, with Phoebe Taylor (Eastlands Velo) pinching the win over Cherry in the sprint. Lloyd finished third, while Rowe took fourth to be crowned the overall winner.

Lloyd finished second overall after top six finishes in each stage, and Taylor completed the podium in third.

Youth B Boys

Leon Atkins (Welwyn Wheelers CC) won the prologue in 2:53.21 – two seconds ahead of Albie Jones (North Cheshire Clarion), while Alex Coles (Evolution Racing Academy) finished third.

Atkins continued with another victory on Saturday, taking a solo win by 45 seconds on the bunch. Aaron Cocker (RTD-J’sCycleShack) won the bunch sprint to take second, while Alex Coles (Evolution Racing Academy) came third and also took the combativity award.

Daniel Thompson (Cleveland Wheelers CC) took the win on Sunday in Kent, with a clearance of three seconds over Joshua Jewitt (Stockton Wheelers CC), while Atkins finished third with the bunch.

Stage four saw Jones win the bunch sprint, while Oscar Lawrence (Velo Club Venta) pinched second over Coles.

A 16th place finish on the final stage was still enough for Atkins to take the overall win, while Jones finished second, and Coles completed the podium in third.