Tulett wins UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships junior title

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Ben Tulett (Great Britain) rode to victory on a muddy morning in Valkenburg, making it two wins in a row for Great Britain at the UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships. Tomas Kopecky (Czech Republic) took silver, 22 second back, while Ryan Kamp (Netherlands) took bronze at 30 seconds.

After last year’s British clean sweep in Luxembourg, Tulett - brother to 2017 silver medallist Dan - had a lot to live up to, and was among the leaders from the start of the race.

It was UCI World Cup winner Loris Rouiller of Switzerland who took the initiative at the start, riding on his own up front as others, including World Cup runner-up Kopecky, tested the limits of traction as they got used to the wet mud.

Kopecky soon joined Rouiller in the lead; the pair enjoying a five second-gap at the end of lap one before the swelling chase group recaptured the duo. They looked the strongest in the early exchanges, pulling away on a few occasions while not taking a decisive lead.

An on-foot section towards the end of the second lap provided the impetus for the first real sort-out, with Tullett pulling out a solo lead as the race reached its halfway point. Rouiller lost contact with the whittled-down chase group, which saw Kopecky joined by a trio of Dutch riders.

Tullett looked comfortable with a fifteen-second lead at the beginning of the penultimate lap, though any mistake would blow the race wide open again. Further back Kopecky punched out alone, eating into the gap with a big effort.

The duo were together at the start of the final lap, and the momentum looked to be with the Czech rider as he pushed the pace early, gapping Tullett. American Lane Maher was ten seconds back in third, but under attack from the Dutch trio.

After a cat-and-mouse game among the leaders, Tullett struck out midway through the final lap - a move that immediately looked decisive as Kopecky had no answer. Indeed, he would be forced to go on the defensive against the Dutch surge behind him.

A ten second gap soon opened up for Tullett, and the first year junior duly avoided any mistakes as he soloed across the line to take the first rainbow jersey of the weekend. 

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