France with a series of victories in the run-up to the French National Championships.

The 18-year-old, who will be representing the Cote d'Azur region in the June 27 championships, has hit form just at the right time and the French Press has been quick to recognise the achievements of the cyclist they call "le Bermudian.'' Hubbard's most recent win came in the Grand Prix de Pierrefeu -- a seven-kilometre mountain climbing time trial -- which he completed in 11 minutes 42 seconds.

An exhausted Hubbard collapsed after crossing the finish line having gone off too fast. But he soon recovered to celebrate a victory that could well have catapulted him to first place in the senior points standings for the Cote d'Azur region. Lying second going into the event, Hubbard's win certainly gained him some ground on his main rival, who came in third.

Victory in the Grand Prix de Pierrefeu brought Hubbard's tally for the season to three -- having previously won the 90-K Grand Prix de Biot and the mountain time trial of the Grand Prix de Gourdon, in which he not only established a new record but also beat last year's national champion.

The 12 regions of France each send a 10-man team to the national championships where Hubbard will be bidding to repeat his recent success. Unfortunately, he will be faced by a very flat 150-K course not particularly suited to his style of riding -- his best performances so far having been achieved on the mountains.

Hubbard will be using next week's Cote d'Azur Championship as a final warm-up for the big event the following week.