Altura Patterson Training Racer Ruth Mordaunt has been awarded the Master Women's series win, following the controversial canning of the final series round.
Ruth was leading the series by just one point over National Champ Nina Davies after four rounds, and the series was set for a showdown in the final round at Penmachno in North Wales, scheduled for 13th and 14th September. However, event organisers Thetford Racing, along with British Cycling, cancelled the round, claiming a lack of pre-entries meant they were unable to cover their costs.
The mountain biking community is outraged at the decision, especially following the recent announcement by British Cycling of their multi-million pound deal with Sky, boosting the National Governing Body's already overflowing coffers. Many riders and teams had pre-booked travel and accommodation for the event and will be left out-of-pocket to the tune of hundreds of pounds.
Organisers have since announced that the series standings, originally set to be decided on the best four from five results, would be decided by the best three from four results. This left Ruth and Nina tied on points, however the organisers have confirmed that Ruth will be awarded the series, on the basis of her two race wins to Nina's one. This could be viewed as a fair decision in decidedly unfair circumstances, as Nina and Ruth will now be denied the opportunity to finish what has been a close and hard-fought series. No doubt this disappointment will be echoed throughout the different race categories, and will take the shine off the acheivement of many of the eventual winners.
In the Elite women's competition, National Champ Jenny Copnall took an uncontroversial win as the ongoing series leader, with Altura Patterson Training's Jenn O'Connor jumping into second spot with just three results, one point ahead of Irish German racer Melanie Spath. In the Elite men's competition, the series leaders after round 4 were separated by just one point, with Gareth Montgomerie ahead of Ian Wilkinson. However, the decision to base the series on three results awards Montgomerie the win, and hops younster Ian Bibby into second, pushing Wilkinson into third.
In the Whyte Enduro Series, Ruth also won the 75km without controversy, as the only rider to complete three out of four rounds. Mel Spath won the 100km category, also the only rider to complete three out of four. Will Bjergfelt was the clear winner in the 100km men's category with an anassailable lead of 100 points after four rounds. In the 75km men's category, Billy Joe Whenman jumps into the lead, to take the series win with his three results.
For a full list of series points go to http://www.britishnps.co.uk/seriespoints.htm
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