A Great win for British Ladies
By TMX Archives on 24th Sep 09
AFTER a disappointing showing at last year's event in Andorra, the British Ladies Trials team were back on top again at the latest edition of the FIM Ladies Trial des Nations held in Italy.
The new look trio of Rebekah Cook, Emma Bristow and Joanne Coles snatched a late and single-mark win over Spain, who were headed up by nine times Women's World champion, Laia Sanz. This takes the British tally to three victories in this competition, with only Spain now having the same number of wins.
Cook was the sole survivor of the 2008 ‘Rock Chicks' that finished third 12-months ago behind Spain and Germany, with the new squad looking strong on paper after some good collective performances recently at World level.
The terrain surrounding the Italian spa town of Darfo Boario Terme, 90-minutes drive north east of Milan by car, was almost British in some respects with a mixture of dirt climbs and rolling rocky outcrops dominating the nearby hills.
Running over a similar course to the one used in the final round of the 2009 Ladies' individual World series the day before, the 14-sections looked well suited to cater for the wide range of abilities covered by the nine nations represented in this year's ladies event. As well as the usual European countries, teams from the USA and Australia were also amongst the entry.
LADIES TRIAL des NATIONS
Darfo Boario Terme, ITALY
1 GREAT BRITAIN – 9 total (Emma Bristow (Gas Gas), Joanne Coles (Gas Gas) & Rebekah Cook (Sherco)).
2 SPAIN – 10 total (Laia Sanz (Montesa), Mireia Conde (Beta) & Sandra Gomez (Gas Gas)).
3 GERMANY – 21 total (Iris Kramer (Gas Gas), Rosita Leotta (Gas Gas) & Ina Wilde (Sherco)).
4 FRANCE – 53 total (Blandine Guillaud (Gas Gas), Maryline Journet (Gas Gas) & Sandrine Juffet (Gas Gas)).
5 NORWAY – 66 total (Lene Dyrkorn (Gas Gas), Connie Ludvigsen (Sherco) & Emma Inger Nyland (Sherco)).
6 ITALY – 115 total (Martina Balducchi (Beta), Sara Rivera (Beta) & Sara Trentini (Gas Gas)).
7 AUSTRALIA – 123 total (Lonie Brooke (Sherco), Kristie McKinnon (Scorpa) & Michelle Owen (Sherco)).
8 UNITED STATES – 196 total (Carolilne Allen (Gas Gas), Sarah Duke (Gas Gas) & Louise Forsley (Gas Gas)).
9 PORTUGAL – 241 total (Ligia Matos (Sherco) & Rita Vieira (Gas Gas)).
IN the build-up to the Ladies Trials des Nations, a healthy entry of 35 headed to Darfo Boario Terme, Italy, for the final round of the World Ladies Trials Championships. Despite already claiming the title, Spaniard Laia Sanz didn't let up, and claimed another decisive win ahead of Britain's Rebekah Cook.
Cook fought hard, and after the opening lap sat just one-mark behind Sanz, who dropped five marks on the tricky section 12. On lap two Sanz upped her game and went on to ride through the 14 sections clean, while Cook, along with the rest of the entry, stumbled on section 12 to finish the day with a loss of just 11 marks.
The second place was enough to move Cook up into second overall in the final series standings, just pipping Iris Kramer by two-points. Meanwhile fellow Brit, Joanne Coles finished the day in fifth overall to secure fourth overall in the Championship.
WORLD LADIES TRIALS CHAMPIONSHIP
Rd 3 – Darfo Boario Terme, ITALY
1 Laia Sanz (E - Montesa) 5 + 0 = 5
2 Becky COOK (GB - Gas Gas) 6 + 5 = 11
3 Iris Kramer (D - Scorpa) 8 + 6 = 14
4 Rosita Leotta (D - Gas Gas) 7 + 8 = 15
5 Joanne COLES (GB - Gas Gas) 11 + 7 = 18
6 Miriea Conde (E - Beta) 11 + 8 = 19
7 Sandra Gomez (E - Gas Gas) 8 + 15 = 23
8 Sandrine Juffet (F - Gas Gas) 12 + 13 = 25
9 Ina Wilde (D - Sherco) 18 + 10 = 28
10 Maryline Journet (F - Gas Gas) 20 + 17 = 37
11 Elisabet Solera (E - Gas Gas) 27 + 13 = 40
12 Emma BRISTOW (GB - Gas Gas) 19 + 22 = 41
13 Connie Ludvigsen (N - Sherco) 18 + 26 = 44
14 Hanna STYLES (GB - Gas Gas) 23 + 22 = 45
15 Alba Villegas (E - Sherco) 33 + 20 = 53
FINAL SERIES STANDINGS after 3 rounds (Best 2 to count): 1 Laia Sanz 40 points (CHAMPION), 2 Becky COOK 34, 3 Iris Kramer 32, 4 COLES 24, 5 Leotta 23, 6 BRISTOW 21, 7 Gomez 18, 8 Conde 17, 9 Wilde 15, 10 Juffet 15, 11 Maria CONWAY 13, 12 Journet 12, 13 Donna FOX 11, 14 Sasha TURKINGTON 8, 15 Solera 7, 16 Villegas 6, 17 Carla Calderer 5, 18 STYLES 5, 19 Ludvigsen 4, 20 Maddalen Aizpurua 3, 21 Katy SUNTER 2, 22 Blandine Guillaud 1.
FOR FULL REPORT SEE T+MX NEWS, FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2009
Emma Bristow