The easiest prediction to make in this Bermuda sporting weekend was that Robin Horsfield would win his seventh national mountain bike championship.

And Horsfield never gave his supporters a moment’s worry, completing the course in 1hr 2min 20sec to beat Conor White (1:08:37) by more than six minutes with Che’quan Richardson in third (1:19.10).

Gabriella Arnold beat Florence Pedro in the women’s race with Arlene MacGuiness and James Holloway winning the masters divisions. Dylan Eiselt won the junior boys race with Charlotte Millington coming out on top in the junior girls division.

Horsfield began in his customary fast fashion and was never challenged but admits he puts the pressure on himself to compete at the highest possible level when he returns home for the national championships.

“Most mountain bike races start out right from the gun,” Horsfield said.

“It’s a sprint as you are trying to make it to the narrow trails first. That’s the idea and I came here to race. I wanted to race at the highest level I can, so for me it’s just performing as I would in any other race.

“Racing at home I still put the same pressure on myself as I would in a high-level race overseas because I’ve got friends, family and sponsors here to demonstrate my skills in front of.

“When I’m racing in Canada it’s harder for people to get a grip of the racing that I’m doing and the trails that I’m racing on, so to be able to come home, put on a good performance and show people my development is pretty important for my racing overseas, so I’m always ready to go full speed.

“It’s stressful in that sense as I like to demonstrate that I’m getting faster and that I’m doing well.”

So with a good performance and a win under his belt in his first race of 2025, Horsfield has already turned his attention to the Pan American Championships in San Jose, Costa Rica, in a few weeks.

“I’m pleased with where I am on the bike and everything is going well,” he said.

“My coach was down on the island with me to watch the race so it was good to have him here to see how I’m going. So far everything seems great and I’m in line for a good season.

“I’ll just get ready for San Jose, which is a little bit warmer so I’ll do a bit of training in heat and get the body ready for hotter temperatures. I’ll be continuing regular training and if I can build a bit of fitness between now and then it would be great but I’d be happy to take this fitness into that race.

“There is some new technology, using saunas to replicate hotter temperatures. You don’t necessarily have to train in them but you can become acclimated. It’s not as great as if you are racing in the heat but you have to do what you can to be prepare.

“It’s nice to be back here for two weeks, spend some time with family and get some good training in as it’s still a bit cold in Canada.”