Zac Marriage opens Australian Road Championships with U23 men's time trial win

The first titles in the newly located AusCycling Road National Championships were awarded today, with South Australia's Zac Marriage claiming the U23 men's time trial title in Perth with a storming run over the 28.8km course.

After making it to the third step of the podium in the U23 category in both 2022 and 2023, the 21-year-old Butterfields Ziptrack Racing rider this year found his way to the top step with a time of 35:53 for the event which played out on a course around Bold Park. The race against the clock was comprised of three laps of a 9.8km loop with 109m of elevation gain per lap.

"I've been trying to win this since I was first-year under-23. Now it's my last year, so it feels really good to finally get the top step," said Marriage in an AusCycling statement. "I know the last corner was a bit 'techy' as well, so it was kind of like full concentration until the end, but the final 10 metres felt pretty sweet.

It was a clear-cut win, with 2024 U23 road race champion Fergus Browning (CCACHE x BODYWRAP) second, coming over the line 41 seconds back while his third-placed teammate John Carter was 1:29 behind Marriage's time.

The junior categories also took to the course earlier in the day, with Max Goold claiming the U19 men's time trial by five seconds despite a crash on the last corner. Goold had delivered a clear indication he was working towards flying form, with an attacking ride and fourth-place finish in the Mt Buffalo stage at the Tour of Bright in December. His winning time was 25:11, with Lucas Stevenson second in the 19.2km test, while Fletcher Medway was third.

"Final corner, I was full sprinting, and I didn't realise it cut back on itself. I locked it up, went sideways and hit the ground," said Goold. "Luckily, my chain didn't drop, for one. I could get back on, I was pedalling with one foot over the line."

Having already accumulated a national title on the track in December, 17-year-old Amelie Sanders stepped onto the top step again in Perth as she won the U19 time trial in 29:36, with the ARA-Skip Capital rider more than ten seconds ahead of her nearest rival Georgia Gardner and twenty seconds ahead of third-placed Leani van der Berg.

The 38.4km men's time trial plus the 28.8km long U23/elite women's events will take place on the same loop on Thursday afternoon.

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