VIDEO: 2016 Gran Fondo World Championship in Perth, Australia
Altitude Training's CEO, Belgian Thomas Desonay end up 19th at the TT and 8th at the road race
Men's Results
In the youngest male group, Belgian Gerard Hophra got away in the final to get the first males World title of the day. A step up from his bronze of last year. Matej Lovse (SLO) and defending champion Christian Muller (GER) got with him on the podium.
Deno Van Heerden (RSA) is the new 35-39 World Champion. He outsprinted Anthony Chapman (NZL) and Thomas Ford (AUS) for gold in a 12 men sprint.
Canadian Michel Jean out sprinted Slovenian Borja Jelic and Australian Matthew Warner-Smith in a close finish for the 40-44 World Title.
Sam Smith (AUS) outsprinted his compatriot Tim Hoy while Greek rider Loukas Katapodis got the bronze medal. A first medal in the World Championships history for Greece.
Tim Jameson from Australia finished seconds before a 5 man group to take gold in the 50-54 men?s race. Andrew Brierley (AUS) and Keld Fjord (DEN) stepped with him on the podium.
Paul Miller (AUS) is the new 55-59 World Champion. He was faster in the sprint than Jim McMurray while Slovenian Andrej Zavbi won the bunch sprint for bronze.
Swiss Freddy Landon can be considered a local World Champion as he?s living in Perth. Hungarian Attila Nagy and Australian John Watters earned silver and bronze.
Ex-pro rider Danny Clark was too strong for Peter Bertelsen (DEN) and Hanss Bauer (GER) to take another World Title after the many he already claimed during his pro career on the track.
The oldest Men's category was for Mick Pattan (AUS) who outsprinted Henri Mevel (FRA) and time trial champion John Horsburgh (AUS).
Women's Results
The women started in two groups with all ladies from 19-34, 35-39, 40-44 and 45-49 grouped in one start while the 50+ had another start after all the men. These combined starts make it harder to control as you have to look for your own opponents in a larger peloton. unlike the men where nobody could renew their World titles from last year, a lot of women did successfully.
The 19-34 women ended with a complete Oceania podium with Natalie Kerwin (NZL) winning the sprint before Cassia Higgs (AUS) while Amy Schramm (AUS) won the sprint for bronze two minutes later.
Justine Barrow (AUS) beat the defending World Champion Sophie Evrard (FRA) and Victoria Veitch (AUS) to take the W35-39 gold.
German Astrid Schartmuller kept the 35-39 World Champion jersey to both take the fastest overall female time to renew her 40-44 World Title of last year in Denmark. Time Trial World Champion Jeannie Blakemore (NZL) and Deborah Hennessey (AUS) completed the podium.
Italian Maria Cristina Prati was the next World Champion to renew her title. She outsprinted Nicky Rolls (AUS) and Kathryn Woolston (AUS).
A third lady successfully defending her title from Denmark was Danish Karen Hviid Christensen. Kate Olgers (AUS) and Claudia Carceroni Gilles (FRA) completed the podium.
Sissel Vien (NOR) was the last World Champion to renew her title. She outsprinted Carol McCallum (NZL) and Heather Hamling (AUS).
Julia Emblin crowned herself new World Champion in the 60-64 female age group to take another gold after Pietermaritzburg 2012. Time Trial World Champion Marti Valks (NED) and Mary Jones (NZL) completed the podium.
The oldest age group was won by Gaye Lynn (AUS) for a complete Oceania podium with Sharon Prutton (NZL) in second and Lori Slattery (NZL) in third.
The average speed of the fastest winners was respectively 39.1km/h for the males (Gerard Hophra) and 35.3 km/h for the females (Astrid Schartmuller and Justine Barrow).
Link to full results - http://www.timedresult.com/2016-gran-fondo-world-championships-gran-fondo-results
About Altitude Training
Altitude Training PRO/AM Camps pair professional cyclists and elite amateurs with a small number of guests in a fun and relaxed environment. At Altitude Training, our focus is maximizing improvement, achieving your cycling goals and of course, having a blast!
Our experienced team of pro racers, coaches and guides will lead you on breath-taking rides through some of the most spectacular roads in Europe and the United States, all with pro-caliber on-ride support and logistics.
After the ride, our guests will rest up and unwind at carefully-chosen luxury hotels, offering an abundance of amenities and gourmet dining with the finest regional cuisine specifically tailored to the dietary needs of our athletes.
We offer our guests the perfect balance of challenge and enjoyment. Our individualized coaching approach, based on custom training plans developed for each guest, aims to nurture endurance, pedal efficiency and strength gains so that our guests will leave stronger, more confident cyclist for the season ahead.
We deliver a pro team experience from the very moment guests arrive at the airport. We have tended to every practical detail before, during and after the rides from the rides with service vehicles, mechanical support, daily massage and nutrition.
Altitude Training was founded by Thomas Desonay, an elite Belgian cyclist. After having spent years racing all over the world, Tom is eager to share his love of cycling and enthusiasm for coaching with our guests.
Spaces are limited to ensure personalized coaching and attention.
We welcome guests with range of experience and abilities, the only requirement is a passion for cycling and a drive to improve.
For more information, please visit - altitudetraining-camp.com
