Murphy and Schneider take early leads in Cyclingnews' Bell Lap series

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John Murphy (Holowesko-Citadel) and Samantha Schneider (Iscorp Pro Cycling) took the early leads in Cyclingnews' brand new criterium series - The Bell Lap - after the opening round at Athens Twilight Criterium in Georgia on April 28.

Murphy relied on his Holowesko-Citadel teammates to provide him a perfectly timed lead-out to win the men's race, while his teammate Bryan Gomez finished second and Frank Travieso (EDA-Evolution Cycling Team) finished third.

In winning Athens Twilight, Murphy secured 25 points toward The Bell Lap series and took the overall lead. His teammate Gomez sits in second place with 18 points and Travieso is third with 15 points.

In the women's race, Schneider out-sprinted US professional criterium champion Erica Allar (Rally Cycling) and Harriet Owen (The Meteor-Intelligentsia).

Schneider now leads The Bell Lap series with 25 points, Allar is in second with 18 points and Owen is in third with 15 points.

Cyclingnews created The Bell Lap point series to highlight the most important, historic and challenging races on the criterium circuit. Athens Twilight was the first race of the series whereby points are awarded to the top 10 men and women throughout the 16 events (19 race days).

Points will be awarded after each criterium as follows: 1st place - 25 points; 2nd -18; 3rd - 15; 4th -12; 5th - 10; 6th - 8; 7th - 6; 8th - 4; 9th - 2; 10th - 1.

Round two of The Bell Lap series will take place at Rochester Twilight - Rochester, New York, on May 19.

The final race of the series is held on September 15 at the Atlantic City Resurgence Fest Criterium in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The Bell Lap men's and women's titles will be awarded to the riders who score the most points over the course of the season in the final overall standings.

2018 Bell Lap standings after Athens Twilight - Brief Results