New Zealand National Championships - CN

Te Amawutu, New Zealand, January 9-11, 2009

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Stage 2 - January 10: Elite women road race, 120km

Holt scores double

Cambridge rider Melissa Holt made it a unique double double when she won the RaboPlus national roach cycling championship in Te Awamutu today. Holt followed up on her victory in yesterday's time trial by out-sprinting a small but select field to claim the women's road title over the 120km circuit. The former New Zealand representative also won both the time trial and road race last year in Hawkes Bay.

Her victory was even more special in that she has been based back in New Zealand for more than a year and concentrated on the Ironman triathlon last year, winning her age group in New Zealand and going on to place in the top 10 in her age group at the world championships in Hawaii.

"I am naturally stoked," Holt said after her win today. "I don't know where the sprinting legs came from today. My Waikato team really worked hard for me today and did a great job."

Holt won in 3:36:26, out-sprinting Nelson's Karen Fulton and Christchurch's Tracy Clark in the sprint into Te Awamutu after four laps of a circuit near Kihikihi.

Auckland's Marina Dujnvak repeated her aggressive approach that she showed in last year's race, leading Britta Martin and Tara Ellerton away on the break after 20km. She pushed out to two minutes after two laps and extended it to three minutes before the Waikato riders, led by former Olympic rower Sonia Waddell, turned up the heat and whittled away the lead.

They were caught with 20 kilometres remaining and a number of breaks all came to nothing with the peloton involved in a bunch sprint.

Holt managed to grab the best wheel and launch herself to the win by just two seconds from the chasing bunch, led by Fulton and Clark from her Waikato teammates Emma Petersen and Waddell, who again impressed after a strong showing in the time trial.

Favourite Joanne Kiesanowski finished in the bunch in eighth place, after earlier being awarded the BikeNZ's 2008 road cyclist of the year honours for her eighth placing in the world championships and strong showing in Beijing.

Results

1 Melissa Holt (Waikato/BoP)            3.36.26 (33.267 km/h)
2 Karen Fulton (Star & Garter-Tasman)      0.02
3 Tracy Clark (Canterbury ST)                  
4 Emma Petersen (Waikato/BoP ST)               
5 Sonia Waddell (Waikato/BoP ST)               
6 Jeannie Kuhajek (Star & Garter-Tasman ST)    
7 Katri Laike (Otago ST)                       
8 Joanne Kiesanowski (Canterbury ST)           
9 Emma Crum (Team Cyclosport ST)               
10 Britta Martin (Star & Garter-Tasman ST)     
11 Toni Bradshaw (Auckland ST)                 
12 Tracy Best (Team Cyclosport ST)             
13 Bronwen Frazer (Star & Garter-Tasman ST)    
14 Kelly Maclarn (Waikato/BoP)             0.05
15 Emma Hutchings (Otago ST)                   
16 Serena Sheridan (ECNI)                  0.08
17 Rushlee Buchanan (Waikato/BoP)          0.11
18 Sally Fraser (Waikato/BoP)              0.12
19 Marina Duvnjak (Auckland)               0.29
20 Jessica Jolly (Team Cyclosport)         0.35
21 Gabrielle Vermunt (Southland)           0.45
22 Anna Stevenson (WCNI)                   0.58
23 Rosy Mccall (Auckland)                  0.59
24 Lana King (Star & Garter-Tasman)        1.01
25 Rachel Bartells (Auckland ST)               
26 Yvette Hill-Willis (Auckland ST)            
27 Dale Tye (Southland)                    4.59
28 Kerri-Anne Torckler (WCNI)              5.31
29 Tara Allerton (WCNI)                   11.02
30 Malindi Maclean (Auckland ST)