Bradbury hears the news that she just won the event while surrounded by her teammates and coaches. On Thursday evening, Brevard College sophomore Nicole Bradbury of Hamilton, Ontario won the Dual Slalom event at the US Cycling Collegiate Mountain Biking National Championship in the women’s varsity division.
Surrounded by her coaches and teammates after ripping through the finish gates on her final run, Bradbury was not sure whether she had taken the win until the announcer confirmed she had the top spot and had secured a national championship.
"I wasn’t sure what to expect because I’ve only been in a few slalom races," she said. "Each time I was just trying to see where I could push it more and more."
Slalom racing is a special discipline of downhill mountain biking in which cyclists compete in bracketed heats against other racers as they bomb down a technical course side-by-side with the other rider. The competitor with the best time after two runs, one in each lane, takes the win and moves further down the bracket.
Bradbury qualified 10th for the event, but bested every other competitor in each one of her competition heats to bring home the big win on the first of four days of competing.
"It makes us incredibly proud," Head Coach Brad Perly said. "I think it will set the tone for the rest of the competition."
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