New Zealand's leading female cyclists have been to the fore on both sides of the Atlantic, as they build for October's Commonwealth Games.
Beijing Olympian Cath Cheatley won the Fitchburg Longsjo Classic, a four day stage race in Massachusetts, where three New Zealanders filled the top four places in the 50th running of the prestigious North American event.
Cheatley, riding for her US Colavita-Baci team, repeated her 2008 triumph, winning the opening stage circuit race as well as the mountain road race on stage two. From there she maintained her overall lead in the time trial and the final stage criterium.
She finished 1m 11sec ahead of teammate and New Zealand road race champion Rushlee Buchanan (Te Awamutu) with 2009 world individual pursuit champion Alison Shanks (Dunedin), riding for the New Zealand National Team, finishing fourth overall 2m12s from the winner.
The New Zealand women's squad for the Commonwealth Games are currently preparing in Trexlertown, Pennsylvania along with some members of the men's track and development squad.
The kiwi men were not left behind in the Fitchberg race with Taupo teenager Patrick Bevin finishing fifth in the final stage criterium with his Bissell teammate Jeremy Vennell also in the peloton. Vennell finished third on overall classification, only 12 seconds from winner David Veilleux.
Meanwhile Linda Villumsen continues to hold a high placing after the fourth stage of the Giro Donne in Italy. She is in fifth place overall on general classification after today's 90km stage from Ficarolo to Lendinora. It was won by Villumsen's HTC-Columbia teammate Ina Teutenberg who has triumphed in all four stages so far.
The New Zealander is currently 58 seconds behind the leader.
