Brown’s win makes it two in a row

GRACE Brown has won the elite women’s time trial at the national road cycling championships for a second consecutive year, cementing her status as Australia’s fastest woman against the clock.

The FDJ-Suez Futuroscope rider claimed silver in Sunday’s road race despite starting as favourite but made no mistake in Tuesday’s time trial and will leave Ballarat with the third elite national title of her career.

The win continues a stellar six months for Brown, during which time she has won gold in the time trial at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham and silver in the same event at the road world championships in Wollongong.

Brown was the last of 23 entrants to begin the 28.6 km-long time trial course and came in with a time of 40:58.84.

“Coming second at the world championships puts a little bit of a target on my back, but it doesn’t really change what I do,” she said.

“It’s an individual event and all you can do is focus on racing your best race so, I just get out and try and do my best really.

Brown’s time was milliseconds short of her personal best for the event – 40:58.00 – set when she came second in 2021.

Georgie Howe of Team Jayco-AlUla claimed silver after coming in 37.89 seconds behind Brown.

Brodie Chapman, the surprise winner of the road race on Sunday, rounded out the podium with a time of 42:03.93, which put her 1:05.08 minutes behind Brown.

Brown’s focus now shifts to her return to the Tour Down Under, which kicks off the pro cycling calendar in South Australia this week.

The 30-year-old has not raced in the event since 2020 but will take her place at the start line in Glenelg on Sunday.

– BY JASPER BRUCE/ AAP IMAGE