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E-MTB champions go back-to-back, Cuthbert and Allen among XC winners

Mar 13, 2024

Jon Odams and Jess Hoskin have overcome scorching conditions to defend their E-MTB titles, while Zoe Cuthbert and Grant Allen were also among the winners on day two of racing at the 2024 GWM Mountain Bike National Championships.

Heat and dust defined the day at Awaba Mountain Bike Park in Lake Macquarie, where national titles were awarded in cross-country’s e-mountain bike, relay and adaptive categories.

Such were the temperatures that Hoskin's motor shut off halfway through her E-MTB race, leading to extraordinary scenes of the race leader pouring water on her bike to cool it down.

Jess Hoskin on her way to back-to-back E-MTB titles.​​​​

Her victory, however, was never in doubt. Hoskin led from start to finish, coming home over four minutes ahead of Connor Mielke, who collected a second silver medal in as many days.

In the men's e-bike race, not even an early crash could stop Odams from going back-to-back.

The defending champion stopped to straighten his bars on the opening lap, but he soon caught and passed Shannon Johnson to regain the lead. From there, Odams managed his effort to take a convincing win.

“I didn’t know what the competition was going to be like. I knew it was going to be pretty tough. But the conditions on the day being so hot and dry certainly made it interesting,” Odams said.

Jon Odams (second from left) defended his title despite crashing on lap 1.

“I was worried that the course would probably not suit my tactic of the lightweight bike and lightweight battery, but it worked out pretty well, so I’m pretty happy.”

Hoskin said the conditions made this title more rewarding.

“It was a bit tougher this year; it was a challenge,” Hoskin said. “My e-bike overheating, and all the challenges of the heat. It feels good to work for it this year, and it means a lot more.”

Cross-country Relay (XCR)

In the cross-country relay, a team featuring Commonwealth Games medallist Zoe Cuthbert and junior Australian representative Harry Doye took the spoils.

The unique format sees teams of four riders each completing one lap of the XCO course. Teams must include at least one female, junior and masters rider, who can ride in any order.

Zoe Cuthbert tags in her teammate in the XCO relay.

Cuthbert’s teammate Connor Wright set a blistering first lap to gain an early advantage. However, Cuthbert’s strength proved a key difference, lapping nearly a minute faster than any other female rider to set up a convincing victory.

“The team is obviously super important, and coming up with a good team becomes a big part of it,” Cuthbert said.

“It just makes it a lot more fun being able to race with other people and feel like you're part of something a bit bigger.”

Adaptive cross-country

Earlier in the day, the adaptive cross-country titles were decided, with many competitors still on a high after competing for the first Adaptive Downhill national title yesterday.

Of the exciting finishes across the categories, the Men’s 1A came down to a sprint where Patrick Best pipped Clint Pickin to add to his downhill win.

In the 2B race, Grant Allen and Renee Junga went toe-to-toe, pushing each other to the line and taking out their respective men’s and women’s titles.

Renee Junga and Grant Allen square off in the 2B XCO race.

After making a mistake that cost him crucial time in the downhill, Dean McSporran was a man on a mission from the start whistle, and carried it through to win the 1B title.

“I just put my head down and just went,” McSporran said. “Once I got into my rhythm, the track was just so good. It was so fast, unreal, and good little technical bits.

“There was a couple of little corners where your back wheel dropped away into a rut, so you had to be really careful on that. Then, there were a couple of tight little technical rocky corners that they’d thrown in, and you had to watch where you were going on that as well.

“It was great to do, and to see so much variety of bikes and classes, the sport is just going to grow. To only having a few riders last year to this year, the sport is definitely growing.”

Results – Cross-country E-MTB

Men

  1. Jon Odams (Southern Cross CC) 1:16:17
  2. Shannon Johnson (St Kilda CC) +0:58
  3. Thiago Boaretto (Greenvalleys MTB Club) +4:20

Women

  1. Jess Hoskin (Caloundra Off Road Cycling Association) 1:25:33
  2. Connor Mielke (Greenvalleys MTB Club) +4:23
  3. Emma Stevenson (Hunter Mountain Bike Association) +7:44

Results – Cross-country Relay

  1. Zoe Cuthbert, Harry Doye, Jay Gibson, Connor Wright - 1:02:18.372
  2. Levi Dougherty, Adrian Jackson, Ruby Taylor, Jack Ward - 1:05:00.259
  3. Joel Dodds, Charli Edwick, Russell Eggins, Darby Gaebler - 1:05:11.603

Results – Adaptive cross-country

Men 1A

  1. Patrick Best (Mersey Valley Devonport CC) 44:27.910
  2. Clint Pickin (Canberra CC) +0

Men 1B

  1. Dean McSporran (Wollongong MTB Club) 40:11.363

Men 2A

  1. Gordon Broome (Hobart Wheelers/Dirt Devils) 36:47.105

Men 2B

  1. Grant Allen (Port Adelaide CC) 25:52.445
  2. Glen Clarke (Macleay Valley Mountain Bikers) +4:19
  3. Jonti Dimond (Western Sydney MTB Club) +5:31

Women 1A

  1. Dalene Pretorius (Dubbo MTB Club) 40:31.715
  2. Grace MacCormick +0:13

Women 2B

  1. Renee Junga (Gravity Girls South Australia) 25:53.242
  2. Coleen Boyes (Hunter Mountain Bike Association) +2:49

2024 GWM Mountain Bike National Championships

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The 2024 GWM Mountain Bike National Championships are proudly supported by Lake Macquarie City Council, and the NSW State Government through tourism and major events agency Destination NSW.

Photos: Matt Rousu

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AusCycling
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Mountain Bike