Cameron claims honours with win over de ste Croix
Canadian James Cameron finished ahead of Neil de ste Croix by 13.5 seconds to claim victory in the Butterfield Bermuda Grand Prix in Hamilton yesterday.Cameron, representing Team Pro City Racing from Victoria, British Columbia conquered the St George’s time trial (47 seconds) on Friday, the GP circuit at Southside (1:41:02) on Saturday and the criterium in Hamilton (54:15) to win in an overall time of two hours, 36 minutes, four secondsDe ste Croix posted an overall time of two hours, 36 minutes, 17.5 seconds, while Adam Harbutt (2:36: 17.7) rounded out the podium places in the Men’s ‘B’ division.Last year’s champions Dominique Mayho finished fourth although he won Friday’s time trial in a scorching time of 44.1 seconds.“The weekend was great, the weather held up and overall I feel happy with my performances over the course of the Grand Prix,” said Cameron. “It is a great event and I will definitely love to come back and compete again.”Adam Hopkin won the Male ‘B’ category in a time of two hours, 12 minutes, nine seconds, with Daniel Degiorgio (2:12:10.1) in second and Brian Steinhoff (2:12:10.2) third.Bermuda Bicycle Association (BBA) president Peter Dunne was delighted with the non-stop excitement on offer during the three days of racing.“Today's criterium was another delight for spectators, building to the Male ‘A’ race where Dominique Mayho went from the gun in an attempt to make up a three minute deficit on the overall race leader Jamie Cameron. He didn't get all the time back but he definitely put on a show for the spectators.“Behind him in the main peloton there was a general classification battle between Neil de ste Croix and Adam Harbutt with Neil taking the second place overall.“There was three days of great racing in all categories with enthusiastic competitors and spectators, as well as having a record number of locals participating this year which shows how much the sport has grown recently and is continuing to grow.“The juniors who raced in adult categories are showing how strong they are and producing impressive results.“I think that we will work on attracting more overseas riders in 2014, a process that needs to start in the late fall. The visiting racers make the racing more unpredictable and raises the level of local racing. If we could attract a couple dozen overseas riders that would be a great addition to the event.”In the Female Open category, Sylvia Storry was victorious in one hour, 35 minutes, 53 seconds, while Karen Smith (1:35:59) and Belinda Castree (1:36:02) finished second and third respectively.Victoria Davis (1:19:0) outpaced Tristan Narraway (1:27:05) and Jessica Godfrey (1:28:35) to the top prize for the Female 13 to 16 age group.Matthew Oliveira (1:38:25) defeated Tyler Smith (1:38:29) to the Male 13 to 16 crown, with Robin Horsfield (1:42:43) claiming third place.Dunne added: “Of course we are extremely thankful for the financial and volunteer support provided by Butterfield Group, not only do they provide the funds to run the event but numerous employees of the company and their family members came out to support the event on all three days.“Nigel Godfrey also did a strong job of organising the event again and we are grateful for his work.”