Mick Hannah takes the win in the 2011 Specialized Australian Mountain Bike Championships in Eagle Park, Adelaide.
Mick Hannah sealed the win with a 2:02.36, two seconds up on second place Josh Button, with flying Bryn Atkinson in 3rd. Must have been close with 2nd, 3rd and 4th all on the same second. Reigning champ Chris Kovarik crashed hard in the bottom section.
In the juniors, Connor Fearon put down a storming run to edge out current junior World Champ Troy Brosnan. Fearon’s time of 2:02.57 would have put him in 2nd in the Elites.
Leonie Picton who has dominated the Australian series so far took gold with a 2:31.27, Claire Buchar was on a flyer until she crashed out near the finish.
Read on for the full story and stay tuned for Sean Anderson’s DirtTV finals video…coming soon!
Results at http://www.onlineresults.com.au
Elite men’s downhill
2009 world championships bronze medallist Michael Hannah (QLD) has stayed true to his form in the seeding round to take out the elite men’s downhill national championship, the last event of the 2011 Specialized Australian Mountain Bike Championships.
All Photo’s: Sean Anderson
Elite men’s downhill
| 1 | 6 | Michael Hannah | 2:02.36 | 2:03.12 | 2:02.36 | ||||
| 2 | 7 | Joshua Button | 2:04.27 | 2:08.20 | 2:04.27 | 1.91 | 1.91 | ||
| 3 | 14 | Bryn Atkinson | 2:04.33 | 2:08.35 | 2:04.33 | 0.06 | 1.97 | ||
| 4 | 8 | Rhys Willemse | 2:04.41 | 2:08.01 | 2:04.41 | 0.08 | 2.05 | ||
| 5 | 27 | Ben Cory | 2:05.66 | 2:08.98 | 2:05.66 | 1.25 | 3.30 | ||
| 6 | 73 | Aden Wyber | 2:06.50 | 2:14.06 | 2:06.50 | 0.84 | 4.14 | ||
| 7 | 4 | Mitch Delfs | 2:07.05 | 2:08.26 | 2:07.05 | 0.55 | 4.69 | ||
| 8 | 2 | Rhys Atkinson | 2:07.10 | 2:07.38 | 2:07.10 | 0.05 | 4.74 | ||
| 9 | 3 | Shaun O’Connor | 2:07.15 | 2:10.55 | 2:07.15 | 0.05 | 4.79 | ||
| 10 | 1 | Chris Kovarik | 2:07.91 | 2:03.69 | 2:07.91 | 0.76 | 5.55 | ||
| 11 | 9 | Kaine Cannan | 2:08.53 | 2:11.81 | 2:08.53 | 0.62 | 6.17 | ||
| 12 | 69 | Ben Bell | 2:08.94 | 2:23.14 | 2:08.94 | 0.41 | 6.58 | ||
| 13 | 33 | Jared Graves | 2:08.95 | 2:08.01 | 2:08.95 | 0.01 | 6.59 | ||
| 14 | 23 | Ryan Andrews | 2:09.36 | 2:11.64 | 2:09.36 | 0.41 | 7.00 | ||
| 15 | 12 | Cillian Kennedy | 2:09.45 | 2:11.53 | 2:09.45 | 0.09 | 7.09 | ||
| 16 | 55 | William Rischbieth | 2:09.50 | 2:09.23 | 2:09.50 | 0.05 | 7.14 | ||
| 17 | 21 | Ezra Bartholdt | 2:09.65 | 2:12.99 | 2:09.65 | 0.15 | 7.29 | ||
| 18 | 10 | Timothy Eaton | 2:09.72 | 2:08.96 | 2:09.72 | 0.07 | 7.36 | ||
| 19 | 24 | Deon Baker | 2:10.22 | 2:11.47 | 2:10.22 | 0.50 | 7.86 | ||
| 20 | 66 | Sean McCarroll | 2:10.56 | 2:12.87 | 2:10.56 | 0.34 | 8.20 |
Elite women’s downhill
1. Leonie Picton, VIC, 2:31.27
2. Claire Buchar, CAN, 2:33.38
3. Julia Boer, ACT, 2:37.24
4. Holly Baarspul, WA, 2:38.77
5. Genevieve McKew, NSW, 2:39.13
Under 19 men’s downhill
1. Connor Fearon, SA, 2:02.57
2. Troy Brosnan, SA, 2:05.28
3. Brandon Yrttiaho, QLD, 2:05.33
4. Ben Power, QLD, 2:11.07
5. Sam Fraser, QLD, 2:12.03
Recording the fastest run of the championships, Hannah claimed the gold medal in a time of 2:02.36 bumping good friend Joshua Button (NSW, 2:04.27) into the silver medal position followed by Bryn Atkinson (2:04.33) in third.
Reigning national champion Chris Kovarik (QLD) hit the dirt in the lower section of the course, costing the 33-year-old any chance of back-to-back victories.
Hannah, who currently lives in Colorado with his wife, returned to Australia in pursuit of the green and gold jersey.
“Everything went perfect actually,” Hannah said.
“It’s always a bit nerve racking being the last guy, but Josh, a good mate of mine, was leading at the time so I was pretty stoked for him so just wanted to have a clean run.
“I came over here just for the race, I wanted the win.”
Elite women’s downhill
National series leader Leonie Picton (VIC) has continued her clean sweep of the Australian domestic season, taking out the elite women’s downhill competition for her first national championship.
Starting the 2010/11 season with no podium performances, Picton has since posted wins at the Glenorchy, Mt Baw Baw and Mt Buller rounds and she did not disappoint with an impressive performance at Eagle Mountain Bike Park today.
The Maffra rider put everything she had on the line to take the win.
“I made sure I pedaled my guts out, there was nothing left in the tank when I crossed the line. My legs are shaking, I am still shaking, it’s so crazy. This is my first one, so I am ready to bawl my eyes out with excitement,” Picton said.
“I had a very restless night last night just going over in my head what I can do to pick up those times. In my seeding run, I thought I did the best I could have done. Coming out today I had a good think about what I could improve on, walked the track this morning and picked up a few seconds.”
Recovering from a fall near the finish, Canada’s Claire Buchar finished with the second fastest time of 2:33.38. Canberra’s Julia Boer (2:37.24) rounded up the minor placings.
Under 19 men’s downhill
An enthralling battle between two South Australian young guns has produced an upset in the under 19 men’s downhill competition, with Kingswood’s Connor Fearon posting a surprise victory over current world under 19 champion Troy Brosnan.
The victory is the first win of the season for Fearon in what has been in an incredibly tight tussle between the pair throughout the national series.
“This event was the biggest race for this year for me and I made it a goal, so it feels really good,” Fearon said.
“The last two races I have been less than a second off (Troy), and this is the best race to beat him, for the national championship.”
Hoping to make it overseas to compete on the world cup circuit and at the world championships in June, Fearon will have a busy year as he juggles year twelve studies. The 17-year-old admits that whilst riding is his main priority, his parents may not agree.
