DID Ballarat and Buninyong feel a little different to you last weekend than they normally would at this time of year?<\/p>\n
The Cycling Australia National Road Cycling Championships \u2013 having been held locally for 18 consecutive years until 2024 \u2013 were held over in Perth instead, with some familiar athletes shining on the criterium, road, and time trial courses.<\/p>\n
Luke Durbridge paid tribute to teammate Luke Plapp for ensuring he claimed an emotional hometown win in the men’s elite road race.<\/p>\n
Nicknamed Turbo Durbo and one of the most respected figures in Australian cycling, Durbridge won his second elite road race crown on Sunday after being at the front for most of the 177-kilometre race.<\/p>\n
Plapp, the three-time defending champion, bridged across to his suffering Jayco AlUla teammate with 15 kilometres left.<\/p>\n
While he was clearly the stronger of the duo, Plapp paced Durbridge on the last of 13 laps and once it was clear they could not be caught, happily let his teammate cross the line first.<\/p>\n
“It was looking pretty dire straits and he’s a true champion \u2013 I don’t know what would have happened if he hadn’t come across,” Durbridge told SBS.<\/p>\n
“He gave that to me and I can’t thank him enough. Both quads had gone, my back had gone as well, quite a long time ago.<\/p>\n
“Plappy said, ‘Look mate, you just hold the wheel and it’s yours’. I knew I just had to suffer and he’s so strong \u2013 I’m so happy to get it.”<\/p>\n
The 33-year-old, who also won the national road title in 2013, celebrated with family and friends at the finish and called the win “one of the proudest moments of my life”.<\/p>\n
“I was in the zone all day. I just had so much support, so much love and everyone’s here. To do it in front of the home crowd \u2013 wow,” Durbridge said.<\/p>\n
Durbridge has achieved plenty in his cycling career. He has won four national championships in the road time trial, is a former track world champion and was in the road team at the Tokyo Olympics.<\/p>\n
But with the road nationals being held in Perth for the first time since 1997, this was a big goal.<\/p>\n
Liam Walsh (CCache) won the sprint for third at the King’s Park finish, 58 seconds behind.<\/p>\n
WorldTour rivals Jai Hindley (Red Bull BORA Hansgrohe) and Jay Vine (UAE Team Emirates) were in a small chase group unable to bridge the gap to Durbridge and Plapp on the last of the testing 13.6-kilometre laps.<\/p>\n
Durbridge made one of his trademark early attacks and Paris Olympics track gold medallist Conor Leahy (CCache) went with him, building a lead of around two minutes.<\/p>\n
Leahy cracked about halfway and Durbridge was clearly struggling inside the last 30 kilometres.<\/p>\n
Plapp played the role of the cavalry, attacking from the chasers at 15 kilometres and bridging across to Durbridge.<\/p>\n
Hindley’s teammate Sam Welsford, who won the criterium championship, crashed during the race and later abandoned.<\/p>\n
Plapp also won Thursday’s time trial title.<\/p>\n
Earlier on Sunday, 20-year-old Victorian Lucinda Stewart stunned the favourites to win her first Australian women’s elite road title.<\/p>\n
After joining the Liv AlUla Jayco development team only a week earlier, Stewart was in a small breakaway group that dominated the 109-kilometre race.<\/p>\n
She outsprinted Ella Simpson (St Michel) to snare the title, with Cassia Boglio (Swan Drafting CC) third.<\/p>\n
With her previous best result coming when victorious in the Melbourne to Warrnambool race last year, Stewart is the youngest winner of the title since Sarah Gigante claimed the championship as an 18-year-old in 2019.<\/p>\n
Stewart also took out the under-23 Australian title with Sunday’s win.<\/p>\n
The three placegetters were in a five-rider group that formed early in the race. The peloton, full of top-class international riders, let the gap grow too far and the breakaway survived to the finish.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
DID Ballarat and Buninyong feel a little different to you last weekend than they normally would at this time of year? The Cycling Australia National Road Cycling Championships \u2013 having been held locally for 18 consecutive years until 2024 \u2013 were held over in Perth instead, with some familiar athletes shining on the criterium, road, […]<\/p>\n