Compton cruises to 9th national championship victory

Katie Compton (Trek Cyclocross Collective) won her 9th consecutive US National Cyclo-cross Championship on Sunday, one week after clinching the UCI World Cup title in Rome, Italy. Compton will be heading home to Colorado to get in some final training before heading to take on Marianne Vos at the World Championships in Louisville, Kentucky.

"It's a special day and everybody comes with their A-game," replied Compton when asked if her 9th title was a target for the season. "It's very special to me and I want to win. I don't want to be over-confident and come in over-tired and get beat."

Nicole Duke (Alchemy) spent the minutes before call-ups collecting herself near the Cyclo-cross Nationals media room in the Verona Town Library. Duke's preparation worked for when the gun went off she aggressively grabbed the hole shot and held the lead through the first muddy sections of the course until Compton passed her on the first hill.

Compton quickly established a 30 second lead before the first downhill section, located half a lap into the race. Compton conservatively pegged her lead at just over 30 seconds to a chase group that included Duke, Meredith Miller (California Giant Berry Farms/Specialized), and Kaitlin Antonneau (Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.com).

With one lap out of the way Compton opened up and rapidly grew her lead, leaving the race for second and third the main event of the day. Rocking her bike side to side as she found the right line through the challenging course Compton entered the pit every half a lap to switch bikes.

Compton's pit crew, led by her husband Mark Legg, ran a smooth operation despite running out of water on the first lap. "In chaos there is that ability to try and figure how to get everything done," said Legg who was aided by a team of people from Compton's Wisconsin-based sponsor Trek. "The mud was changing so quickly, at first I didn't want to use water because everything would freeze, and then the mud was just turning to concrete. I was chiseling the dirt off of chainrings. It was nuts."

At the start of the third lap Miller, Duke and Antonneau held a solid lead of 15 seconds over Jade Wilcoxson (Team Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies) and Teal Stetson-Lee (Team Luna Chix.) Then halfway through lap three Antonneau and Miller were suddenly out of the picture after both riders independently crashed and suffered mechanical issues with their chains, a problem that plagued riders in both the men's and women's races throughout the day.

Despite her own mechanical issues Duke made up time on the rough and slippery downhill sections of the course, which she rode aggressively, lap after lap. Jade Wilcoxson, however, made a successful push in the final lap of the race to overpower Duke and take second place, 1:20 behind Compton.

Wilcoxson, a relative new-comer to the 'cross scene, spent her lead-up to nationals training at the velodrome in Los Angeles. "I'm actually coming off of a nine-day track camp down in LA," said Wilcoxson, who finished third in the NRC standings this past year. "I finished that up just on Friday and that turned out to be pretty good, that steady power, that's what you needed for this course."

Duke hammered in for third, three seconds behind Wilcoxson, a finish that successfully capped off a rough season. "That was pretty epic," recounted Duke after crossing the line. "I had a lot, a lot of mishaps. I felt like a scrapper out there. I knew if I could just stay steady on the flats, and uphills, I had everyone on the downhills. It felt really good and gave me confidence."

The race was a disappointment for several riders like Georgia Gould who came to Wisconsin with great form and a hope to give Compton a run for her money. "It was terrible. Ridiculously terrible. I don't even know what to say," said Gould who still managed fourth place, 1:42 behind Compton. "I just could not get out of my own way in those frozen ruts and mud. Finally by the end I was feeling a little more comfortable and knew the lines. It just took me a while to get my bearings out there."

Compton's next objective is the World Cyclo-cross Championships where she will take on the top cyclist in the world, Marianne Vos. "She's super-strong, fast, and technically good, so she's always the person to watch, and she's only going to get faster." said Compton when asked about her main rival for the world title. "I just want to come in with good form, good legs, and have a good race."

The World Cyclo-cross Championships will be contested in Louisville, Kentucky on February 2-3, the first time the event will be held outside of Europe.

Full Results

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Elite women
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Katherine Compton (Trek Cyclocross Collective)0:43:02
2Jade Wilcoxson (Team Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies)0:01:20
3Nicole Duke (Alchemy)0:01:23
4Georgia Gould (Team LUNA Chix)0:01:42
5Crystal Anthony (Cyclocrossworld)0:02:14
6Teal Stetson-Lee (Team LUNA Chix)0:02:17
7Maureen Bruno Roy (Bob's Red Mill p/b Seven Cycles)0:02:39
8Meredith Miller (California Giant Berry Farms/Specialized/California Giant Cycling)0:02:41
9Kaitlin Antonneau (Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld)0:02:58
10Arley Kemmerer (Charm City Cycling LLC)0:03:45
11Andrea Smith (Ladies First/Minuteman Road Club)0:03:49
12Elle Anderson (Ladies First/Minuteman Road Club)0:04:00
13Alice Pennington0:04:05
14Courtenay Mcfadden (Cycling Northwest)0:04:55
15Amanda Carey (Volkswagen Boise Cycling)0:05:10
16Ellen Noble (Trek Cyclocross Collective)0:05:14
17Corey Coogan Cisek (Cyclocrossracing.com)0:05:36
18Abby Strigel (Trek Cyclocross Collective)0:06:10
19Rebecca Blatt (Van Dessel Factory Team)0:06:58
20Christina Birch (JAM Fund / NCC /Tenet Racing)0:07:20
21Erica Zaveta (Brevard College)0:07:35
22Amanda Miller (Team Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies)0:07:44
23Bethann Orton0:08:13
24Kristin Weber (Boulder Cycle Sport)0:08:14
25Amber Markey0:08:27
26Stacey Barbossa (Colavita Racing Inc.)0:09:20
27Brianne Marshall (NoTubes Endurance Racing)0:09:28
28Katie Arnold (Bob's Red Mill Cyclocross Team)0:09:56
-1lapAllison Arensman (Pepper Palace/Spin-Tech Training pb ABRC/Asheville Bicycle Racing Club)Row 28 - Cell 2
-1lapRebecca Gross (Tough Girl Cycling)Row 29 - Cell 2
-1lapHannah Finchamp (Team LUNA Chix)Row 30 - Cell 2
-1lapApril MorganRow 31 - Cell 2
-1lapAlyssa Severn (My Wife Inc)Row 32 - Cell 2
-1lapKathleen Lysakowski (Cycle Lodge)Row 33 - Cell 2
-1lapSunny Gilbert (Michelob Ultra - Big Shark Racing)Row 34 - Cell 2
-1lapAnna DingmanRow 35 - Cell 2
-1lapEmily Zinn (Naked Women's Racing p/b TriBella)Row 36 - Cell 2
-1lapElizabeth So (Les Petites Victoires)Row 37 - Cell 2
-1lapSarah Sturm (Fort Lewis College)Row 38 - Cell 2
-1lapKatie Melena (Bicycle Bluebook/HRS/Rock Lobster Cyclocross)Row 39 - Cell 2
-1lapEmily Shields (Mock Orange Racing)Row 40 - Cell 2
-1lapMichelle Bishop (North Point Women's Racing Team)Row 41 - Cell 2
-1lapBrittlee Bowman (Pedal Power Team-MA)Row 42 - Cell 2
-1lapCorrie Osborne (Team Extreme)Row 43 - Cell 2
-1lapEllen Sherrill (Bicycle Bluebook/HRS/Rock Lobster Cyclocross)Row 44 - Cell 2
-1lapJessica Kutz (Team EPS/CSS p/b Shebell &Shebell/Riptide Cycling)Row 45 - Cell 2
-1lapHeidi Beck (Twin Six)Row 46 - Cell 2
-2lapsFrances Morrison (JAM Fund / NCC /Tenet Racing)Row 47 - Cell 2
-2lapsMackenzie Woodring (Einstein Racing)Row 48 - Cell 2
-2lapsKatherine Shields (Mock Orange Racing)Row 49 - Cell 2
-2lapsMarian JamisonRow 50 - Cell 2
-2lapsErin Donohue (Mock Orange Bikes)Row 51 - Cell 2
-2lapsAllyson Tufano (Sportif Coaching Group/Western Howard County Cycling)Row 52 - Cell 2
-2lapsChristina Tamilio (Ladies First/Minuteman Road Club)Row 53 - Cell 2
-2lapsSierra Siebenlist (Team Indiebike)Row 54 - Cell 2
-2lapsJennifer Tillman (Charm City Cycling LLC)Row 55 - Cell 2
-2lapsKathleen Wulfkuhle (C3-Twenty20cycling.com/Charm City Cycling LLC)Row 56 - Cell 2
-2lapsKaylan Comer (u-neak | DESIGNS/Central Velo Racing & Development)Row 57 - Cell 2
-2lapsKristin Korevec (MadCity Velo Club)Row 58 - Cell 2
-2lapsDeb Sweeney Whitmore (Team Athletix Benefitting Globalbike/Globalbike Racing)Row 59 - Cell 2
-2lapsSarah Fredrickson (Speedway Wheelmen)Row 60 - Cell 2
-2lapsMollie BrewerRow 61 - Cell 2
-2lapsLeslie TimmRow 62 - Cell 2
-2lapsJulie Phelps (Big Ring Flyers)Row 63 - Cell 2
-2lapsKristina YoungRow 64 - Cell 2
-2lapsJessica Hill (The Pony Shop)Row 65 - Cell 2
-2lapsJennifer Nowlin (Peace Coffee Racing)Row 66 - Cell 2
-2lapsMckenzie Melcher (The TEAM SoCalCross)Row 67 - Cell 2
-2lapsMadelaine Melcher (The TEAM SoCalCross)Row 68 - Cell 2
-2lapsLindsay KnightRow 69 - Cell 2
-3lapsBreeze Brown (Evol Elite Racing)Row 70 - Cell 2
-3lapsErin Silliman (ALAN North America Cycling)Row 71 - Cell 2
DNSCatherine Hollibaugh (Team Nebo Ridge)Row 72 - Cell 2
DNSCatherine WalbergRow 73 - Cell 2
DNSKim Thompson (Spidermonkey Cycling)Row 74 - Cell 2
DNSLinda Sone (Crossniacs)Row 75 - Cell 2
DNSNiki Soderberg (Cyclocrossracing.com)Row 76 - Cell 2
DNSCarol Jeane Sansome (Silver Cycling)Row 77 - Cell 2
DNSAmanda Mcnabb (Team Group Health/Sound Velo Cycling Club)Row 78 - Cell 2
DNSAntonia Leal (Planet Bike)Row 79 - Cell 2
DNSMolly Hurford (Colavita Racing)Row 80 - Cell 2
DNSJennifer Gaertner (Motofish Racing)Row 81 - Cell 2
DNSJeanne Fleck (Velo Duluth)Row 82 - Cell 2
DNSJordan Dube (MAD ALCHEMY / VERGE RIDER COOPERATIVE)Row 83 - Cell 2
DNSJennifer Herrell-Rhoades (Trek Cyclocross Collective)Row 84 - Cell 2
DNSJulie HunterRow 85 - Cell 2
DNSNicole Thiemann (Team CF)Row 86 - Cell 2
DNSCarmen Small (Specialized lululemon)Row 87 - Cell 2
DNSLaura Van Gilder (C3-Twenty20cycling.com/Charm City Cycling LLC)Row 88 - Cell 2
DNFAngelina Stevens (Garneau Custom)Row 89 - Cell 2
DNFBailey Semian (Pure Energy Cycling-ProAirHFA)Row 90 - Cell 2
DNFSarah Lu (ROBOTS <3)Row 91 - Cell 2
DNFShannon Gibson (Stan's NoTubes Elite Women's Team)Row 92 - Cell 2
DNFJessica D'amato (Evol Elite Racing)Row 93 - Cell 2
DNFCassandra MaximenkoRow 94 - Cell 2
Swipe to scroll horizontally
U23 women
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Kaitlin Antonneau (Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld)46:00:00
-1lapEmily Shields (Mock Orange Racing)Row 1 - Cell 2
-1lapKatherine Shields (Mock Orange Racing)Row 2 - Cell 2
-1lapAllison Arensman (Pepper Palace/Spin-Tech Training pb ABRC/Asheville Bicycle Racing Club)Row 3 - Cell 2
-2lapsMollie BrewerRow 4 - Cell 2
-2lapsErin Donohue (Mock Orange Bikes)Row 5 - Cell 2
-2lapsMckenzie Melcher (The TEAM SoCalCross)Row 6 - Cell 2
DNSCatherine Hollibaugh (Team Nebo Ridge)Row 7 - Cell 2

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