OAK RIDGE, TENN. - - Amber Neben (Lake Forest, Calif./PX4 Sports) and Joey Rosskopf (Decatur, Ga./BMC Racing Team) successfully defended their national crowns in the USA Cycling Pro Time Trial National Championship on Thursday. This was the first of three events held June 21-24 for the prestigious USA Cycling Pro Road, Individual Time Trial and Criterium National Championships.
Neben retained her hold on the Stars-and-Stripes jersey by riding two laps of the 7-mile course along Melton Lake in Oak Ridge, Tenn. in 29 minutes and 43 seconds. She was 15 seconds faster than her nearest competitor, Taylor Wiles (Fairfax, Calif.) of Trek - Drops.
“Special,” is the one word Neben used to describe a third national in the ITT title to her illustrious cycling career. She also has two world championships in the race of truth. “Yeah, at 43 (years old) and back-to-back national championships is really a special thing. You know, God is still moving, still working. I don’t take anything for granted. I had seven or eight second places before I won my first title in 2012. So then to win two in two years, it’s crazy. It’s special for sure.”
Finishing in third in the 30-rider field for the Pro Women was 21-year-old Emma White (Delanson, N.Y.) of Rally Cycling. Her finish, just 39 seconds behind Neben, gave her the Under-23 ITT national title for women.
“Being the U23 champion is very special, but I think third in the pro race is something even more special for me,” said White, who is the reigning U23 champion for the U.S. Pro Road Race. “I haven’t been on the pro podium at a national championship before, so I’m really happy with that. This year it was big for me to come back and race even harder. The jersey is so special.”
Leah Thomas (Boulder Creek, Calif.) of UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling finished six seconds behind White for fourth. Lauren Stephens (Dallas, Texas) of Cylance Pro Cycling, who finished second in 2017, was fifth.
Like Neben in the women’s event, Rosskopf was the final athlete out of the start house for the men. Chad Haga (Fort Collins, Colo.) of Team SunWeb held the best time as 17 other riders in the 38-rider field crossed the line. He would finish second, 28 seconds behind Rosskopf’s winning time of 39 minutes, 46 seconds on the three-lap contest. Rosskopf ’s teammate, Brent Bookwalter (Asheville, N.C.) would finish in third, just six seconds behind Haga.
“There’s no way I can show up to a race expecting it (a win) to happen. Really, everything has to come together,” Rosskopf said about his back-to-back ITT title. “You saw the weather shape up the last lap, which was a big advantage for me. It’s hard to show up here and know that (Neilson) Powless, (Chad) Haga and Brent (Bookwalter) have all done better time trials than me so far this season. So something special came together this year and last year at Nationals.”
Bookwalter, in his 12th year with BMC Racing Team, took the silver medal last year in the ITT. His time this year was more than one minute better than Larry Warbasse, the reigning U.S. Pro Men’s Road Race champion, who finished fourth. Twenty-year-old Gage Hecht (Parker, Colo.) with Aevolo Cycling put in a strong performance for fifth, edging the reigning U23 Men’s ITT national champion, Brandon McNulty (Phoenix, Ariz.) of Rally Cycling, by eight seconds. Neilson Powless (Roseville, Calif.) with Team Lotto NL-Jumbo, who was third in the Pro ITT last year, was 14th on Thursday.
“The race went very well for me. It started raining during the first men’s wave, so we all had a wet course,” Haga said about the weather conditions. The rain held off for the pro women’s race, but soaked the 21-mile event for the pro men. “I did my best race possible, I think I paced it well. A couple of tiny mistakes, as I figured out the course, the tight U-turns. I thought it could have been a winning ride. You know, I went as fast as I could.”
The U.S. Pro Criterium Championship will take place Friday, June 22 under the lights in downtown Knoxville, with the women’s contest beginning at 6:15 p.m. and the men starting at 7:45 p.m. The 1.1-mile closed-loop circuit will roll along S. Gay Street and feature six turns, with one steep climb on Clinch Avenue. Sunday, June 24, brings the signature event of the championships, the U.S. Pro Road Race Championship, which will also be held in downtown Knoxville.
For complete results, visit the event web page.
PRO 1/2 WOMEN
1. Amber Neben (Lake Forest, Calif.), PX4 Sports .29'43"680
2. Taylor Wiles (Fairfax, Calif.), Trek - Drops .29’58"810 +15"
3. Emma White* (Delanson, N.Y.), Rally Cycling .30’22"080 + 39"
4. Leah Thomas (Boulder Creek, Calif.), UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling .30’28"390 + 45"
5. Lauren Stephens (Dallas, Texas), Cylance Pro Cycling .30'53"690 + 1'10"
WOMEN U23
1. Emma White (Delanson, N.Y.), Rally Cycling .30'22"080
2. Summer Moak (Scottsdale, Ariz.), Rally Cycling .32'25"040 + 2'03"
3. Hannah Arensman (Brevard, N.C.), Feed Hungry Kids Project p/b Happy Tooth .33'52"410 + 3'30"
4. Charlotte Backus (Durango, Colo.), Prestige Imports/Porsche/Audi Race Team .35'32"110 + 5'10"
PRO MEN
- Joey Rosskopf (Decatur, Ga.) BMC Racing Team - .39'46"500
2. Chad Haga (Fort Collins, Colo.), Team SunWeb - .40'14"990 + 28"
3. Brent Bookwalter (Asheville, N.C.), BMC Racing Team .40'20"640 + 34"
4. Larry Warbasse (Traverse City, Mich.), Aqua Blue Sport .41'22"810 + 1’36"
5. Gage Hecht (Parker, Colo.), Aevolo Cycling .41'46"430 + 2'00
BROADCAST AND SOCIAL MEDIA
- The U.S. Pro Road Race Championships for women and men will be webcast on Sunday, June 24 on the USA Cycling YouTube Channel (youtu.be/t5VvWxLcYFI), and Facebook Page (www.facebook.com/usacycling/)
- The men’s road race on Sunday afternoon will be broadcast live by WATE-TV in Knoxville, WATN-TV in Memphis, and by WKRN-TV in Nashville. Highlights and interviews from the women’s race will be included in this programming.
- Follow race updates on Twitter @usacyclinglive #USPro #CritNats
- Follow other event updates on Twitter @usacycling and @knoxrocks
MORE INFORMATION
- For race course maps - www.visitknoxville.com/usa-cyc...
- For information on VIP Hospitality - www.visitknoxville.com/usa-cyc...
- For downtown parking options - www.downtownknoxville.org/park...
About USA Cycling
USA Cycling is the national governing body for the sport of cycling in the United States and oversees the disciplines of BMX, cyclocross, mountain bike, road and track. The mission of USA Cycling is to develop the sport of cycling in the United States at all levels and to achieve sustained international racing success while fostering a shared commitment to safety, integrity, and the joy of cycling. USA Cycling works to identify, develop, and select cyclists to represent the United States in international competition, and also supports amateur bike racing through grassroots development programs and the provision of critical infrastructure to run organized racing. USA Cycling’s membership is comprised of racers and cyclists of all ages and abilities, clubs, coaches, officials, mechanics, and race directors. To learn more about USA Cycling, visit usacycling.org
About Visit Knoxville
Visit Knoxville (Knoxville Convention and Visitors Bureau) is the official CVB for the City of Knoxville and Knox County. Visit Knoxville is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, private company that works together with the community, business leaders and local and state government to further develop Knoxville as a premier leisure, meetings and travel destination. The Visit Knoxville Sports Commission is managed by Visit Knoxville and strives to bring world-class sporting events as well as amateur sporting type events to Knoxville, Tennessee.
###
Contacts:
Jackie Tyson, Peloton Sports Kristen Combs, Visit Knoxville
678-362-6228, sportsPR@pelotonsports.net 865-306-4341, kcombs@knoxville.org
This article was updated at 2:23pm on June 22, 2018.
