Defending Tour Series champions JLT Condor got their 2017 campaign off to a perfect start, winning the opening races of the series in Redditch on Tuesday.
The series kicked off with a team time trial event in the afternoon. JLT Condor's five-man squad of Ed Clancy, Jon Mould, Alex Frame, Ian Bibby and Breton Jones set the quickest time of 3-49 on the technical course, during which teams had to use regular bikes rather than time-trial-specific machines.
Bike Channel-Canyon came home for second place, with Madison Genesis in third spot out of the seven squads starting the event.
JLT Condor then backed up the TTT win with a team victory in the criterium race in the evening.
Although the race was won by Bike Channel-Canyon's Chris Opie, JLT's Jones and Frame placed second and fourth in a strong showing for the squad.
Alice Barnes wins Matrix Fitness GP opening round in Redditch. Photo: Andy Jones
(Image credit: Andy Jones)
The opening round of the Women's Matrix Fitness Grand Prix was won by Alice Barnes (Drops), who sprinted ahead of Olympic team pursuit gold medallists Katie Archibald (WNT) and Elinor Barker (Team Breeze).
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Barnes's Drops squad also take the lead in the team standings.
The next round of the 10-round 2017 Tour Series takes place in Stoke-on-Trent on Thursday, May 11. This also includes the second round of the Women's Matrix Fitness Grand Prix.
Highlights of the Redditch round of the Tour Series are on ITV4 at 7pm on Wednesday, May 10, with a repeat the following day, and available on-demand via the ITV Hub.
Results
Tour Series 2017, Redditch: Team time trial
1. JLT Condor
2. Bike Channel Canyon
3. Madison Genesis
4. One Pro Cycling
5. Raleigh-GAC
6. Metaltek-Kuota
7. Morvelo-Basso
Men's race (individual)
1. Chris Opie (Bike Channel-Canyon)
2. Brenton Jones (JLT Condor)
3. Enrique Sanz (Raleigh-GAC)
4. Alex Frame (JLT Condor)
5. Tobyn Horton (Madison Genesis)
6. Tom Stewart (Madison Genesis)
7. Ed Clancy (JLT Condor)
8. Rory Townsend (Bike Channel Canyon)
9. Matt Holmes (Madison Genesis)
10. Jon Mould (JLT Condor)
Men's race (team)
1. JLT Condor
2. Bike Channel Canyon
3. Madison Genesis
4. Raleigh GAC
5. One Pro Cycling
JLT Condor top team standings, Tour Series 2017 Redditch
(Image credit: Andy Jones)
Tour Series team standings after round one
1. JLT Condor, 20pts
2. BIKE Channel Canyon, 18pts
3. Madison Genesis, 16pts
4. Raleigh GAC, 13pts
5. One Pro Cycling, 13pts
6. Metaltek Kuota, 10pts
7. Morvelo Basso, 8pts
Women's Matrix Fitness Grand Prix, round one
1. Alice Barnes (Drops)
2. Katie Archibald (Team WNT)
3. Elinor Barker (Team Breeze)
4. Rebecca Durrell (Drops)
5. Eileen Roe (Team WNT)
6. Lydia Boylan (Team WNT)
7. Lucy Shaw (Drops)
8. Emily Nelson (Team Breeze)
9. Megan Barker (Team Breeze)
10. Charmaine Porter (Team Ford EcoBoost)
Women's Matrix Fitness Grand Prix team standings after round one
1. Drops, 96pts
2. Team WNT, 95pts
3. Team Breeze, 88pts
4. Team OnForm, 51pts
5. NCC Group Kuota Torelli, 44pts
Tom Stewart
(Image credit: Andy Jones)
Chris Opie and manager
(Image credit: Andy Jones)
Chris Opie wins
(Image credit: Andy Jones)
JLT Condor top team standings, Tour Series 2017 Redditch
(Image credit: Andy Jones)
Katie Archibald
(Image credit: Andy Jones)
Alice Barnes
(Image credit: Andy Jones)
Drops lead team standings after Alice Barnes wins Matrix Fitness GP opening round in Redditch.
(Image credit: Andy Jones)
JLT-Condor
(Image credit: Andy Jones)
Bike Channel-Canyon
(Image credit: Andy Jones)
Raleigh-GAC
(Image credit: Andy Jones)
One Pro Cycling
(Image credit: Andy Jones)
Morvelo-Basso
(Image credit: Andy Jones)
Madison-Genesis
(Image credit: Andy Jones)
Metaltek-Kuota
(Image credit: Andy Jones)
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Nigel Wynn worked as associate editor on CyclingWeekly.com, he worked almost single-handedly on the Cycling Weekly website in its early days. His passion for cycling, his writing and his creativity, as well as his hard work and dedication, were the original driving force behind the website’s success. Without him, CyclingWeekly.com would certainly not exist on the size and scale that it enjoys today. Nigel sadly passed away, following a brave battle with a cancer-related illness, in 2018. He was a highly valued colleague, and more importantly, an exceptional person to work with - his presence is sorely missed.
