Horakova wins in Fort William

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There were no surprises in round three of the four cross Mountain Bike World Cup at Fort William, Scotland, with Jana Horakova (Duratec) taking her second victory of the year before a crowd of 8,000 spectators.

Fort Bill was uncharacteristically warm and dry, making the course dusty and loose, and causing numerous washouts in the corners. The organizers also replaced a rock garden halfway down the course with extra turns, after rider complaints that it was too narrow. Despite the conditions, the top four qualifiers in the women's field made it through to the finals.

The women's defending World Cup champion, Anneke Beerten (Suspension Centre) qualified fastest, and easily made it to the final, along with Horakova, Anita Molcik (Yeti) and Czech rider Romana Labounkova. One rider missing from the final was Australian Sarsha Huntington - Huntington has been consistently among the top riders this season, but crashed hard in the small final for fifth place while leading, and had to be carried off the course on a backboard.

In the final, Horakova was first out of the gate, followed by Molcik, and these two held their positions to the finish. Beerten had a poor start, and struggled all the way down the course, finishing fourth and last behind Labounkova. Lucia Oetjen (Thoemus Racing) won the small final for the remaining podium spot.

"I'm very happy, I didn't expect this," said Horakova. "I didn't have a very good gate, I thought, so I am surprised to win here."

Horakova also said that this will be her last World Cup until the final round in Windham, New York, as she switches to BMX for the upcoming world championships in South Africa. She now leads the series with 220 points to Molcik's 180, with Beerten a distant third at 130 points.

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