General News
10 January, 2019
Brown crowned time trial champion
GRACE Brown has added an Australian time trial title to her ever growing resumé.
GRACE Brown has added an Australian time trial title to her ever growing resumé.
The 26 year-old triumphed in Tuesday’s time trial portion of the 2019 Road National Championships held in Buninyong.
In just her second start with world tour team Mitchelton-Scott, Brown completed the 29.5-kilometre course in 42 minutes and 35 seconds.
Her time was more than one and a half minutes faster than runner-up Gracie Elvin (44.08).
“I knew I could do a good time and I thought I had a chance of winning,” Brown said.
“Three weeks ago I did a race-pace recon here on the course and I was going a lot faster than last year so I knew what race I had to do and what plan I needed to follow.
“I ended up smashing that time also.”
The result means Brown can display Australia’s national champion colours in any time trial event around the world for the next 12 months.
“It’s pretty unbelievable,” she said.
“It hasn’t sunk it yet that I’ve taken the jersey and will wear it around Europe.”
The gold medal performance betters her result from the previous year where she finished fourth.
Brown also competed in last Sunday’s 104.4-kilometre road race as part of the national championships program, finishing 12th, a little over three minutes behind eventual winner Sarah Gigante.
After wrapping up her maiden National Road Series crown last year, Brown continues to put her best foot forward ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where selection for Australia’s road time trial berth remains wide open following the retirement of Katrin Garfoot.
However, there was little time for Brown to rejoice in her latest success, as she returned to the saddle yesterday for stage one of the four-day Women’s Tour Down Under in South Australia.