Preview: Who to watch at Gravel National Championships?

The stage is set for a thrilling 2025 AusCycling Gravel National Championships, which this year makes its debut at Mt Crawford Forest in South Australia. 

Some of Australia’s top cyclists across mountain bike, gravel and road will battle for the coveted green-and-gold bands at the inaugural Ponderosa Pines Gravel Race on Saturday, after two years of being part of Devil’s Cardigan in the heart of Tasmania’s wilderness.

Fast facts

• What? AusCycling Gravel National Championships x Ponderosa Pines
• Date? April 26, 9.30am (ACST)
• Location? Mt Crawford Forest, South Australia
• Distance? 102km
• Elevation gain? About 1200m
• Surface? 100 per cent gravel

Among those lining up will be a defending champion, former and current mountain bike national champions, past road champions and Olympians. 

Let’s take a closer look at some of the main contenders to fight for the elite men’s and women’s national titles.

Elite women

Two of the biggest names in Australian cycling, Tiffany Cromwell and Rebecca Henderson, will go head-to-head for the first time when they make their Gravel National Championships debut.

Incredibly, this Saturday will also mark their return to racing after they both suffered significant injuries in recent months: Cromwell broke her collarbone at Milan-San Remo Women, while Henderson fractured her shoulder and thumb at the GWM MTB National Championships at Mt Buller.

With defending champion Courtney Sherwell to miss the gravel nationals currently in the USA racing the Life Time Grand Prix, Cromwell, a gravel and road veteran, will no doubt be the favourite.

But for Henderson, a 12-time XCO national champion, it will not only be her first gravel national championships, it will also be her first ever gravel race.

Other women to watch include Life Time Grand Prix alumni Ella Bloor, Dirty Warrny winner Matilda Raynolds, up-and-coming rider Talia Appleton who had a successful campaign at the ProVelo Super League and won Gravelista, and Paris Olympian Sophie Edwards who will be hard to beat if it comes down to a sprint.

Talia Appleton raises her hands as she crosses the line at Gravelista 2024.

Elite men

The men’s field is wide open with a start list full of hitters who have the potential to go all the way and win this year’s title.

Defending champion Brendan Johnston returns to defend his title and will go in as the one to beat. He is again doing Life Time Grand Prix this year and will be hungry to take the green and gold bands back to the USA for the rest of the season. 

Can Brendan Johnston make it back-to-back gravel national titles?

He is coming off a 5^th place at the Life Time Sea Otter Classic where another contender for the national title Brent Rees also finished 18^th. Rees comes into the race in hot form, after having won silver in the Sea Otter Classic Fuego XL MTB race.

2024 Melbourne to Warrnambool winner Mark O’Brien returns for another crack at the title having finished second behind Johnston last year, while Dirty Warrny winner Scott Bowden will be looking better his third in 2023.

Reece Tucknott is back again after finishing fourth for two consecutive years. Can he crack the podium this year?

Coming off the back of his Fastest Known Time record of the Great Forest National Park, Tasman Nankervis will also be a threat.

Nankervis has enjoyed success on South Australia’s gravel roads in the past having won the 2023 RADL GRVL race and finishing second behind Johnston last year.

Cameron Scott will be explosive if it comes down to a sprint finish and he is still there at the end. 

What they are saying

Tiffany Cromwell: “This year it fits in nicely as I’ve been able to combine it with Devil’s Cardigan and SEVEN to make it a worthwhile trip to comeback to Australia mid-season for 4 weeks. I’m excited to line up at the nationals and fight for the jersey. As a nice added bonus, it’s great to have it in Adelaide, my hometown. Hard to know how I’ll be after my injury, but I’m excited to start racing again.”

Rebecca Henderson will race her first ever gravel race on Saturday. Photo: Matt Rousu

Rebecca Henderson: “Feels like a good opportunity to get a hard race in before going back to the world cup.I have no idea about how to race gravel but I'm looking forward to it, I have nothing to lose and a great experience to gain and a fun trip over to SA. I think it'll be a nice feeling to put a race number on again, although it hasn't been a crazy long break, the timing has been tough.”

Scott Bowden: “Any opportunity to race for the green and gold stripes is good motivation. It’s a little hard to know what to expect having not raced on the course but I’m looking forward to what will no doubt be ~100km of throwing down in the Ponderosa Pines”

Follow the results here.