Nopesport

An overview of the Future Champions Cup standings at the halfway stage.

Note: Many runners have not completed the permitted 4 runs, and scores and reviews may not take this into consideration. All the views expressed below are the opinion of Supersaint, and no offence is meant by them.

M18
Oleg Chepelin has already amassed an impressive 230 out of a possible 240 – in this form he is unlikely to be caught and should go into the final as top seed, though with Ed Kelleher finishing in 2nd place on his first outing of the year at the British Champs Oleg could be pushed close. Another who could topple Chepelin from top spot is Scott Fraser who added 3rd place this weekend to the 1st he got at the GO National event. Other consistently top runs have been posted by Chris Mitchell, who has finished top 6 in all of the first four races, Andy Llewellyn with two 3rd places and Duncan Coombs with a couple of 4th places. The M18 class has to be the hottest competition this year, with a myriad of runners fighting for the 15 places available in the FCC Final, including amongst others Drew Brunton, Dan Tett, Joe Taunton, Ben Stevens, Kyle Heron amd Joe Mercer, and it could go down to who is prepared to travel to the last two races to pick up those precious points.

M20
Graham Gristwood got his 2nd win of the season, to give him a score of 175 out of 180, and should go into the final as top seed with Mark Nixon only likely to compete in two more races. David Hodkinson finished 3rd this weekend for another consistent performance, and along with fellow GB Junior Squad members Dan Halliday, Mark Saunders, Colin Olivant and Chris Sellens should be vying for 3rd place going into the final.

W18
Cerys Manning ran another superb race to get her 3rd victory of the FCC season, and looks set to go into the FCC final in pole position. Lizzie Adams finished 2nd, and with one victory already gained should figure highly come the FCC final. Other athletes high up at the halfway stage include Lucy Jepson with two 2nd places and Helen Gardner with two 3rd places. After these 4 there is a whole host of people and the final 4 qualifying races will make it or break it for them, including Kirsten Strain, Tessa Hill, Becca Roberts, Jess Halliday and Rose Hodkinson.

W20
Mhairi Mackenzie picked up her 2nd win of the season and judging by her form in the UK Cup this year (she is now in 4th place after the first 3 races) will be tough to beat. One of the leading competitors in this years’ FCC competition was the Swiss international Noemi Cerny, who has now returned to her home country, but her points will still stand. Alison O’Neil had a good run at the British Champs to get 2nd place, and along with her 6th place at the GO National event will be hoping for a high position going into the final. Liz Bridge has now had three runs finishing in the top 4 and should also figure near the top come the seeding for the final. Other athletes near the top include Suzy Robertson, Sarah Price and Becky Kingdon.

TOP 15 SCORES (best 4 scores - remember that many people have not completed 4 events)

M18
1 Oleg Chepelin 230
2 Andy Llewellyn 187
3 Chris Mitchell 186
4 Drew Brunton 161
5 Dan Tett 158
6 Joe Taunton 153
7 James Bennett 145
8 Iain Embrey 144
9 Rhys F-Robinson 142
10 Duncan Coombs 138
11 Scott Fraser 132
12 David Bolton 130
13 Ben Stevens 129
14 Gareth Little 126
15 Kyle Heron 123

M20
1 Dan Halliday 194
2 Mark Saunders 190
3 Graham Gristwood 175
4 Rob Little 151
5 David Hodkinson 150
6 Colin Olivant 147
7 Matt Dickinson 140
8 Jordan Larne 135
9 Ross Sanderson 125
10 Mark Nixon 111
11 Chris Sellens 97
12 Peter Gardner 73
13 Jamie Graham 56
14 Tom Chesters 43
15 Nick James 42

W18
1 Lucy Jepson 202
2 Helen Gardner 191
3 Kirsten Strain 182
4 Cerys Manning 180
5 Tessa Hill 174
6 Rebecca Roberts 169
7 Hazel Tant 166
8 Lizzie Adams 160
9 Sarah O'Neil 156
10 Jessica Halliday 130
11 Vicky Campbell 102
12 Rosemary Hodkinson 95
13 Carol White 94
14 Ruth Holmes 87
15 Rosie Brocklebank 81

W20
1 Liz Bridge 194
2 Suzy Robertson 180
3 Becky Kingdon 167
4 Sarah Price 141
5 Mhairi Mackenzie 120
6 Rose Burden 117
7 Noemi Cerny 115
8 Alison O'Neil 100
9 Sarah Jane Gaffney 90
10 Fiona Berrow 84
11 Nicola Robertson 83
12 Sarah Browne 44
13 Heather Houghton 42
14 Sadie Burrow 41
15 Tessa Harrison 34

Good luck to everyone competing in the last 4 Future Champions Cup races at the CLYDE Badge (28 March), JK (10-11 April), and the HOC Badge (18 April).