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Results and Reports for June 29 - July 5, 2002
USA
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Georgia State Criterium championships
Duluth, Georgia, June 30, 2002
Atlanta Velo turns state crit into their own intra-club
Atlanta Velo team report
Tracy Sproule won the 2002 Georgia State Criterium Championships with a determined effort in the last 10 meters to edge out teammates Shannon Hutchison (2nd) and Michele McCulloch (3rd) .
The championship was contested on a closed 0.6mile course in Duluth, Georgia that featured a slight uphill to the finish line each lap. With a modest turnout for the race, the Litespeed women raced individually, choosing not to employ team tactics in winning, but to test each other's resilience in repeated attacks off the front.
Each rider was wired to their coach via two-way radios, all on different frequencies, obtaining different instructions and race strategies to hone their skills. The goal was for each to ultimately test the other with repeated attacks off the front of the pack, scenario that confused the peloton and the spectators alike.
With wary legs headed into the final sprint up to the finish line, the Litespeed women produced an exciting finish with Sproule getting a slight edge on Hutchison, the reigning 2001 Criterium Champion, and McCulloch.
Hutchison turned the tables on Sproule in a non-championship race the following day in Acworth, Georgia when she won a similar criterium that was more relaxed than the previous day's event.
Sproule, the 2001 USCF #1 Ranked Criterium Rider in the United States is presently lying 2nd on the 2002 rankings with Hutchison 4th as of May 28, 2002. They both will be competing in track and criterium races on U.S. National Racing calendar in the coming months.
Results
1 Tracy Sproule (Atlanta Velo/Litespeed) 2 Shannon Hutchison (Atlanta Velo/Litespeed) 3 Michele McCulloch (Atlanta Velo/Litespeed)
