USA grab 12 golds at UCI’s Road Cycling Worlds

Of the 12 world titles that went to the Americans, three were won on the final day.

The curtain came down on the 2013 UCI Para-Cycling Road World Championships in Baie-Comeau, Canada, on Sunday (1 September) after four days of spectacular racing witnessed by hundreds of spectators along the roadside.

Just one medal short of their objective, the USA finished the four days of competition with 19 medals in their pocket.

Of the 12 world titles that went to the Americans, three were won on the final day. Allison Jones (C2) successfully defended her road race title while Megan Fisher (C4) and Jamie Withmore Cardenas (C3) become world champions for the first time.

With 14 medals, the German contingent remained firmly in second place. Two of its athletes, Steffen Warias (C3) and Kerstin Brachtendorf (C5), took their first titles in the 57.2km road race.

The Italians finished third in the medals table, winning the last title of the World Championships, in the handbike mixed relay. The trio of Vittorio Podesta (H2), Luca Mazzone (H1) and Alex Zanardi (H4) added a seventh gold to the Italian collection which numbers 13 medals in total.

Meanwhile the Polish athletes dominated the tandem road races, winning both the men’s and women’s road races. In the women’s B road race, Iwona Podkoscielna and Aleksandra Wnucsek covered the 80km 1:33 in front of the British duo of Lora Turnham and Corrine Hall, victorious in the time trial two days earlier.

The men’s tandems raced over 102.9km and finished in a four-way sprint that went to Marcin Polak and Michal Ladosz.

The remaining world titles of the day went to Venezuela’s Victor Hugo Garrido Marquez (C2), who won a five-way sprint to the finish line, and Dutch athlete Arnoud Nijhuis (C1).

On Saturday (31 August), two USA representatives also graced the highest step of the podium: Monica Bascio (H3) successfully defended her world title, while Muffy Davis also claimed the rainbow jersey in the H2 class.

Andrea Eskau won a medal for the Germans in the H4 class.

The suspense on Saturday was high right throughout the men’s H4 event which was decided in a final sprint to the line after 69.1km of racing.

Italy’s Alex Zanardi finally took the honours in front of South African Ernst Van Dyk, stripping him of his world title. Luca Mazzone (H1) was the other Italian winner of the day.

The gold medal won by Carol Cooke (T2) helped Australia move up into fourth place, just in front of Spain.

Meanwhile, Canadian Shelley Gautier delighted the home crowd with her victory in the T1 class, holding on to her world title. Spain’s Aitor Oroza Flores (T1), Great Britain’s David Stone (T2) and Poland’s Rafal Wilk (H3) were also the first across the line in their respective classes.