Brit Wins Mountain Bike World Cup On Home Soil

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Written by Gaz

Monday, 07 June 2010 16:27

British rider Gee Atherton took first place in the Men’s Downhill following a tremendous show of power and control as the world’s top mountain biking stars wowed huge crowds gathered at the Fort William Mountain Bike World Cup.

Gee’s win marks his first at Fort William. Celebrating, he said: “I’m the most excited I’ve ever been about winning an event. It’s always been a massive goal of mine to win on home soil. The crowd played a huge role for me today. I shredded a huge amount of time from my final stage to take the win because I could hear them cheering me on.”

Gee’s sister Rachel Atherton also had an impressive weekend. Although she could not match her infatic win from the last round out in Maribor (Slovenia) where she beat her nearest rival by an incredible 9. 73 seconds, she still came a very close second. She said she was disappointed but enjoyed the course: “I qualified fast but that meant there was lots of pressure for the final. I still really enjoy racing here - the track was rad!”

Event facts:
.Riders dropped a staggering 555m down the 2.8km boulder-strewn course
. More than 18,000 spectators cheered on the riders from top to bottom at the Nevis Range

        MEN'S DOWNHILL FINAL RESULTS
1.        Gee Atherton GBR (4:35.70)
2.        Cameron Cole NZL (4:36.18)
3.        Greg Minnaar (4:36.91)
4.        Aaron Gwin USA (4:37.71)
5.        Michael Hannah (4:37.75)
WOMEN'S DOWNHILL FINAL RESULTS
1.        Sabrina Jonnier FRA (5:11.57)
2.        Rachel Atherton GBR (5:12.68)
3.        Floriane Pugin FRA (5:16.44)
4.        Tracy Moseley GBR (5:16.46)
5.        Emmeline Ragot FRA (5:20.65) Girlracer magazine

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