Evie and Riley will get to fly their national kits after brilliant performances on their nations' biggest stages
Evie Richards and Riley Amos will get to race in fresh national kits for the remainder of the season after impressive performances. Amos won the US elite men’s XCO national title after a dramatic comeback (and weekend overall) in Roanoke, Va. Meanwhile, several thousands miles away in Pickering, England, Richards secured her third British elite national title, storming short track to win by nearly 30 seconds.
Amos’ weekend was particularly eventful. He took second in short track racing on Thursday after slipping out in a corner, and was disappointed in himself after the race. In XCO racing on Saturday, he crashed again, this time after entering a single track section on Lap 1 in the lead but with a little too much juice. The mishap would eventually lead to Amos’ old friend and XCC winner Bjorn Riley taking a lead of about 30 seconds on Lap 2.
Amos didn’t panic. Instead, he refocused and began the arduous work of slowly reeling in the gap.
Riley Amos making his comeback in Roanoke. | Photo By Bill Schieken/CXHAIRS Media
“If you get excited early, it’s so easy to over-rev the motor,” Amos told Bill Schieken of the indispensable CX HAIRS Bulletin. “So I really just counted on trying to be patient and let Bjorn and Devon [Feehan] almost get, try and get too excited while I focused on drinking, eating and trying to find my groove, find the flow again.”
Amos clawed back time on the climbs over the course of the seven-lap race, but Riley would steal seconds back on the descents. On the final lap, Amos was finally able to catch Riley’s wheel, then he made the winning move by exploding out of the woods onto the final stretch of tarmac before the finish line.
Amos will have the honor of rocking the Stars and Stripes this season and into 2026. He is savoring his first elite national title in the midst of what has been a season full of hard lessons on the World Cup circuit.
“Me and Bjorn have been battling each other trying to do this and trying to break through the ranks since we were like 13 years old together,” Amos told Schieken. “And to be able to each take home a national championship title this weekend is beyond special.
“I also want to say thanks a bunch to the team. I think overall, maybe Trek has had a hard year. We haven’t been at the level we want to be, so to put a nice result on the board for everybody and to come together this week and support each other and have a great crew and keep ticking on it puts some really good momentum in our sails.”
Riley atop the podium! | Photo By Bill Schieken/CXHAIRS Media
Gwendalyn Gibson greeting the crowd at the end of a strong weekend. | Photo By Bill Schieken/CXHAIRS Media
On Friday, Richards showed off why she’s one of the greatest short track racers ever. The defending XCC World Champion and all-time winningest women’s World Cup short track rider dominated the race, getting a lead from the outset and posting the fastest Lap 2 by 16+ seconds to stay well clear of the competition. Her winning time of 20 minutes, 38.6 seconds was nearly 40 seconds faster than second-place Isla Short.
Richards expected a tight race, but she pushed her advantage on the descents and rode away.
“I think with the national champs it’s always quite a nerve wracking race, so I was super happy,” Richards told British Cycling after the race. “I’m really happy with where my fitness is so hopefully I’ll keep momentum into World Champs now. I’m happy and fingers crossed we can keep it going in a good direction for the rest of the season.”
Bjorn Riley congratulating Riley after a thrilling duel. | Photo By Bill Schieken/CXHAIRS Media
Madigan Munro flying through the woods. | Photo By Bill Schieken/CXHAIRS Media
Richards took second in Sunday’s XCO, scoring her second double podium at nationals after winning both short track and XCO in 2023. (She didn’t race nationals in 2024 to focus on the Olympics, where she took fifth.)
She and Amos weren’t the only double-podium takers this weekend. Gwendalyn Gibson took second in short track and third in XCO racing at US Nationals, and has now double-podiumed in each of her last three elite nationals. Teammate Madigan Munro — who, like Amos, is racing elite for the first time this year — was just behind, taking fourth in both events. In Canada, Gunnar Holmgren took fourth in men’s elite short track racing.
The Trek Factory Racing-Pirelli XC squad will now get a proper break after flying to compete in their home nations hot off a World Cup race in Andorra. The next XC World Cup race will take place in Les Gets, France, from Aug. 28-31, followed immediately by World Championships. A nice long recovery should serve them well before a furious finishing stretch to the 2025 season.
Hope you like fireworks.
