Nat Bromhead
Sarah Roy and Cameron Meyer were both shocked and in disbelief after winning their respective National Championship races on Sunday, the two veteran pros showcasing scintillating performances.
Both members of Team Bike Exchange, Sarah Roy, 34 and Cam Meyer, 33, were awarded Gold at the 2021 Federation University Road National Championships in Buninyong, neither expecting to win.
“I am feeling a sense of disbelief because I didn’t expect this today,” said Roy. “But I think that’s what makes it more exciting and makes you more emotional.”
Ninety-four lined up at the start of the 104.4km race at Mt Buninyong near Ballarat.
“I still can’t believe it, I honestly didn’t expect this coming here today especially with the summer I’ve had, it just wasn’t a consideration for me at all to take the jersey, said an overjoyed Roy.
“You can never have confidence in this course, anything can happen. You can just get pipped on the line so it’s not one to ride around feeling like you’ve got it.”
Back-To-Back Win For Meyer
A short time later, and the most exciting Elite men’s race in decades was fought right to the line.
“Luke Durbridge is unbelievable, somehow we just pulled off a miracle!,” exclaimed a shocked Cameron Meyer, the reigning national champion, moments after his trade teammate helped power him to the finish.
“We thought we were all gone. I don’t know how to explain that! That was a nail-biting race, somehow it panned out. They committed to me, I didn’t feel that good with four to go, but we just dug deep and somehow, we pulled off a miracle,” he continued.
“That finish is one of the hardest to get right. Everyone’s legless, I’m legless, I probably sprinted at the lowest watts I ever have, but I just picked the right wheels, ran at the right time and the line came at the right moment. To keep the jersey another year! I can’t believe it.”
Luke Durbridge, who is having a sensational summer after winning the Santos Festival of Cycling, said it was an incredibly stressful race.
“We had a great situation early on and then all of a sudden it went arse up,” he said in his typically candid style.
“I did one lap quite hard and they attacked me, but I just didn’t sit up, I just kept riding. It probably took me two laps to come back to the front and I eventually came back. It all came back on the last lap and it was just such a hard race.”
“When I got back on, we didn’t even know we could possibly win it with 100 metres to go really. Meyer is a classy bike rider, I love riding for the guy. We just didn’t know we had it won, we never gave up, that’s the biggest thing we stand for in this team, we just never give up, we just keep coming back, keep fighting, that’s what we did today.”
A special Luke Durbridge interview will feature in the March/April edition of Bicycling Australia which is on sale soon. Subscribe via greatmagazines.com.au/magazine/bca
Men’s Top 3
1. Cameron Meyer (Team BikeExchange)
2. Kelland O’Brien (Inform TMX MAKE)
3. Scott Bowden (Tasmanian Institute of Sport)
Women’s Top 3
1: Sarah Roy (Team Bike Exchange).
2: Grace Brown (Team Bike Exchange)
3: Lauretta Hanson (Trek Segafredo)
