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Sprinters get their way in round 4 of AusCycling esports series

May 13, 2022

After last week’s hilltop finish, round 4 of the AusCycling National Club Cycling Esports Series presented an opportunity for the sprinters. The 26-kilometre race was held over two laps of Beach Island Loop in Watopia, a largely flat course with two gravel sectors per lap.

Men’s A

As expected, a large peloton of almost 70 riders survived until the finale of the Men’s A category. Nathan Campbell (Lifecycle Cycling Club) made a bid for solo glory with 4km remaining but was only able to eke out a lead of four seconds before a counterattack by Cadel Howie, who exited Watopia’s underwater tunnel in the lead.

In the final kilometre, Jonathon Cridland (Southern Cross CC) struck out on a long sprint in pursuit of an international rider who had caught and passed Howie. Despite hitting over 12 watts per kilogram, Cridland could not reach the front of the race and was swallowed up by the peloton.

In the bunch sprint, Mitchell Stewart (Balmoral CC) took maximum points and his first podium finish of the series. Zachary Muettertis (Illawarra CC) and Adam Bemrose (Gold Coast CC) completed the podium.

A screenshot from Zwift showing a peloton cycling in front of a lava flow on Watopia during the AusCycling National Club Cycling Esports Series round 4

Women’s A

In the Women’s A category, Jessica Bemrose (Gold Coast CC) continued her flawless series by snagging maximum points for the fourth round in a row. The race came down to another reduced group sprint of six riders.

Bemrose was best of the AusCycling-registered riders, with Kathryn Alley (Randwick CC) in the runner-up spot and Dayna Davidson (Southern Cross CC) claiming her second podium in as many weeks.

Other categories

We saw some new names take top points in the other women’s categories, as Tanya Cross (Manning Valley CC), Georgia Marjoribanks (Newcastle Hunter CC) and Clair Doree (Gold Coast CC) each added 30 points to their club’s tally.

Philipp Joebges (Lifecycle CC) made it two wins on the trot in Men’s B, Peter Davis (Port Adelaide CC) took out Men’s C and Robert Dannoun (Waratah Masters CC) once again topped a small Men’s D field.

Overall standings

Waratah Masters CC continue to hold steady at the top. Randwick is slowly gaining ground, closing in to Vikings CC’s podium position.

The AusCycling National Club Cycling Esports Series continues on Zwift next Thursday with round 5 with a steep uphill finish on the Bologna course.

The series is streamed on the AusCycling YouTube channel. For circumstances beyond AusCycling’s control, no stream was available for round 4.

You can continue to register throughout the series. For more information, visit the series page or contact your club.

Standings after round 4

  1. Waratah Masters Cycling Club 1667
  2. Bathurst Cycling Club 1283
  3. Vikings Cycling Club 1021
  4. Randwick Cycling Club 974
  5. Gold Coast Cycling Club 764
  6. Southern Cross Cycling Club 732
  7. University of Queensland Cycling Club 479
  8. Northern Sydney Cycling Club 467
  9. Illawarra Cycling Club 407
  10. Mackay Cycling Club 364
  11. Dulwich Hill Bicycle Club 362
  12. Balmoral Cycling Club 316
  13. Port Adelaide Cycling Club 316
  14. Lifecycle Cycling Club 275
  15. Jindabyne Cycling Club 267
  16. Newcastle Hunter Cycling Club 222
  17. Mudgee Cycling Club 205
  18. Parklife Cycling Club 202
  19. Byron Bay Cycling Club 187
  20. Manning Valley Cycle Club 150
  21. Birrarung Cycling Club 146
  22. Dubbo Cycling Club 142
  23. Hamilton Wheelers Cycling Club 140
  24. Brunswick Cycling Club 137
  25. Sutherland Shire Cycle Club 133
  26. Hawthorn Cycling Club 95
  27. Cairns Cycling Club 92
  28. Knox BMX Club 88
  29. St Kilda Cycling Club 84
  30. Italo-Australian Cycling Club 57

Written by
Ryan Miu
Disciplines
Esports