"Colne
Grand Prix brings in the crowds" The
first ever Colne Grand Prix Cycle Race, the final event in the National Elite
Circuit Race Series, brought crowds estimated at 4,000 people into the centre
of the Lancashire town on Wednesday evening, 21 July, and has been greeted as
a great success by local people. Main
sponsors Pendle Borough Council, Pendle Community Network, Lancashire County Council,
and the East Lancashire Partnership, all pronounced themselves delighted with
the success of this first venture into cycle racing, as a means of promoting the
area and of promoting the health and environmental benefits of cycling. With
the entry of two Great Britain Olympic team members Bradley Wiggins (Credit Agricole)
and Chris Newton (Team Persil), both former World Champions in their disciplines,
alongside the established stars of the series, all the ingredients were present
for a cracking event, and so it proved. Based
on a new circuit around the town's one-way system, covering 60 laps of 800 metres,
the action was fast and furious from the very start. First
to attack was Russell Downing (recycling.co.uk/MG X-Power), closely followed by
big efforts from Chris Newton (Team Persil) and Wiggins, all of which strung out
the field, causing disarray and splits within the first five minutes. After a
series of short-lived breaks, class soon showed through, and a super-break of
Wiggins, Newton, and Downing, joined by the other Downing brother, Dean, (also
recycling.co.uk/MG X-Power), quickly established a ten second lead. As the main
field chased in vain, the four leaders settled into a smooth rhythm, clearly a
couple of kilometres an hour faster than the rest. | Back
in the bunch, series leader Malcolm Elliott (Pinarello) was a little off-form,
having recently become a father again, and he and defending champion Simon Gaywood
(CC Luton) were watching each other like hawks. On the short, fast circuit, the
leaders soon began to catch the tail-enders and as excitement mounted in the crowd,
they lapped the main field at around two-thirds distance. With most of the Science
in Sport intermediate sprints going to Newton, he seemed favourite for the finish,
and to keep things clear, Commissaire Barry Broadbent ruled that the main field
would have their finish at five laps to go, with the four leaders continuing for
the full distance. In an exciting sprint for fifth place, Gaywood secured a clean
gap with a long effort, from Martin Freeman (Will's Wheels) in sixth and Team
Persil's Tom White seventh. |
Local
hero Nathan Fox, whose shop Fox's Cycles is literally within yards of the finish,
rode above himself into eighth place, ahead of superstar Elliott, and won the
£50 prize for 1st local presented by Hope Technology. This
left the circuit clear for the four leaders, and the atmosphere was electric,
as all had the smell of victory in their nostrils. The recycling boys clearly
had the numbers and also the extra incentive, with team sponsor Charlie Jackson
promising to take the entire team out to a local restaurant if they got the win.
Wiggins and Newton, however, had the advantage of their association as part of
the team which won Bronze Medals in the Team Pursuit at the Sydney Olympics, and
were currently preparing for Athens as one of the favourites for the Gold. At
the bell they were still all together, but round the back of the circuit Wiggins
went for a long one and Russell Downing went with him. Into the finishing straight
and it was the tall figure of Wiggins in green all the way, until with a desperate
last effort Downing threw his bike across the line to snatch it by less than a
length, throwing up both arms in delight. A few seconds later Newton took third
in another tight sprint with Dean Downing fourth. Interviewed
on the podium by announcer Willi Moore, himself an Olympic Medallist in 1972,
Russell Downing said he was delighted with the win. "The race went how we planned,
we just kept putting in attacks until we got the split. The circuit worked well,
and I hope to be back next year". Runner-up Wiggins was equally pleased. "It was
brilliant," he said, "it's a great circuit, short and fast. I didn't expect crowds
like this, the support was fantastic". Newton too was pleased to be there and
to see the support of the local crowds, many of whom were there to show their
support for the Olympians. For
his efforts Newton was presented with the Combativity award, also sponsored by
recycling.co.uk. Subject to confirmation, Elliott took the overall series from
Gaywood, and pronounced himself well pleased, "I wasn't quite on song tonight
after missing a lot of training in the last few weeks, so I just made sure I hung
in there" he said. Pendle
Council Leader Cllr Alan Davies was happy to host the event, "Bringing in 4,000
people at a first attempt is excellent. We will do all we can to bring it back
next year". Pendle
Mayor Cllr Dorothy Lord was also delighted, "This is just the sort of thing we
need for the people of Colne and everyone has had a great evening". With
big crowds, the town's pubs, cafes and takeaways doing a roaring trade and the
local media giving full support, it seems that the future of the event is assured.
TOP 20 RESULTS |