The first race of the 2005 World MTBO Championships in Banska Bystrica, Slovakia produced two top 10 performances from the Australian Team in what turned out to be very tough and long middle distance races.

Queenslander Anna Sheldon raced to 6th place and a spot on the podium, after starting very strongly, recording the third fastest time through the first radio control, and taking the lead half way through her race, before coming unstuck on the vague tracks that caught out many other competitors. New Zealand’s Marquita Gelderman rode an almost error free race to record a 4th place finish.

The defending Middle Distance champion, Adrian Jackson, finished in 8th place after a great start, where he also briefly held the lead. Adrian had mechanical problems early – he got to the start and discovered that one of his pedals was nearly falling apart! Adrian was forced to ride the entire race with the malfunctioning pedal. He came unstuck in the last few checkpoints in an area with some vague mapping.

For more Middle Distance reports, photos and maps see the Australian Team Blog