June 20, 2011

Neben is new top women's rider; Men's standings tightening up

Women

Amber Neben won the women's overall at the Nature Valley Grand Prix and overtook the number-one spot in the NRC. Photo by Matthew Moses

With 11 events remaining on the women's USA Cycling National Racing Calendar (NRC), there's a new top women's rider as Amber Neben (Lake Forest, Calif./HTC - Highroad Women) overtook Janel Holcomb (San Diego, Calif./Colavita-Forno d''Asolo). After winning the overall at the Nature Valley Grand Prix, Neben holds a 162-point edge in the women's standings. Erinne Willock (CAN/Team TIBCO-To The Top) trails Holcomb by 19 points in third place and is 40 points ahead of Kristin Armstrong (Boise, Idaho/Peanut Butter & Co TWENTY 12). Evelyn Stevens (Dennis, Mass./HTC - Highroad Women) rounds out the revamped women's top five.

The top three of the women's team standings are unchanged as Colavita-Forno d'Asolo holds a 730-point lead over Team TIBCO-To the Top. HTC - Highroad Women, which totaled five podium positions and seven top-five stage finishes, sits in third place, 261 points behind Team TIBCO-To the Top. Diadora Pasta Zara swapped with Primal-MapMyRider Women's Racing in the last week. Diadora Pasta Zara is the new fourth-place team, 130 points ahead of Primal-MapMyRider Women's Racing, this week's fifth-place team.

At the Nature Valley Grand Prix, Neben won by 19 seconds over Willock in the final results. Armstrong placed third after winning the individual time trial to start the event. Ally Stacher (Hickory, N.C./HTC - Highroad Women) placed fourth overall, four seconds ahead of Stevens.

Men

With his overall win at the Nature Valley Grand Prix, Jesse Anthony moved into third in the men's NRC standings. Photo by Matthew Moses.

The USA Cycling men's NRC standings are tightening up with 14 events remaining on the men's calendar. Jacobe Keough (Sandwich, Mass./UnitedHealthcare Professional Cycling) has pulled to within 112 of leader Francisco Mancebo (ESP/Realcyclist.com). Keough posted three podium finishes, including a second-stage win, at the Nature Valley Grand Prix. After winning the overall at the Nature Valley Grand Prix, Jesse Anthony (Beverly, Mass./Kelly Benefit Strategies - OptumHealth) is the new third-place rider, one point ahead of Hilton Clarke (AUS/UnitedHealthcare Professional Cycling). K. Frank Pipp (Boulder, Colo./Bissell Pro Cycling) jumped from 11th to fifth, 13 points behind Clarke. Click here for the results from the Nature Valley Grand Prix. 

After securing 10 podium positions and 12 top five finishes at the six-stage Nature Valley Grand Prix, UnitedHealthcare Professional Cycling added to its lead atop the men's team standings, opening a 265-point lead over Bissell Pro Cycling. Jamis-Sutter Home jumped from fifth in last week's standings to third this week, 218 points behind Bissell. Team Exergy rose from sixth to fourth in a one-week span, holding a 117-point advantage over Realcyclist.com.

Bernard Van Ulden (San Mateo, Calif./Jelly Belly p/b Kenda) placed second, 17 seconds behind Anthony in the general classification. Luis Romero Amaran (CUB/Jamis-Sutter Home) was 28 seconds behind Van Ulden in third place. Andres Diaz Corrales (COL/Team Exergy) placed fourth and Pipp rounded out the top five.

COMING UP

There are two events on the men's calendar in the next week. On June 25, they will contest the Glencoe Grand Prix p/b AT&T in Glencoe, Ill. The next day is the criterium at the Manhattan Beach Grand Prix in Manhattan Beach, Calif.

NRC standings

Inaugural National Time Trial Calendar underway

LeRoy Popowski (Colorado Springs, Colo./Team Juwi Solar-First Solar) and Kristin McGrath (Durango, Colo./Peanut Butter & Co. TWENTY 12) lead the open categories of the inaugural men and women's USA Cycling National Time Trial Calendar. The calendar continues with the Juniors/U23/Elite Road National Championships Time Trial in Augusta, Ga., on June 23.

Check out the complete standings of the National Time Trial Calendar.

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