2026 Hatherleigh Junior Road Race: report and results
William Brown (Shibden Apex RT) won the Hatherleigh Junior Road Race on Sunday 8 March after a six-rider move proved decisive in the opening round of the 2026 British Cycling Junior Open Road Series.
William Brown (Shibden Apex RT) won the Hatherleigh Junior Road Race after a six-rider move, formed deep into the race on Devon’s rolling roads, stayed clear to decide the opening round of the 2026 British Cycling Junior Open Road Series.
Featured image: SWpix.com
Report
Bright, clear conditions greeted the field in Hatherleigh for a 108-kilometre race that was always likely to reward riders willing to force the issue rather than wait for the closing kilometres. On a rolling and selective course, the race never quite settled into anything passive; even before the decisive move, it had the feel of a day that would favour initiative.
That mattered because Hatherleigh was not simply another junior race on the calendar. It was the first of eight rounds in this year’s British Cycling Junior Open Road Series, the national sequence that runs through spring and summer before ending at the John Richards Junior Tour at the close of August. First rounds do not decide a series, but they do begin to show which riders and teams are prepared to shape it.
The early running was animated by Alex Box (Harrogate Nova Race Team), who helped draw out an initial move, before the race found its hinge point when Noah Wheller of Lee Valley Youth Cycling Club attacked alone and stayed clear for around 10 miles. That effort did not bring victory, but it did change the race. Five riders came across to him: local rider Jed Claxton (Wheal Velocity), Harper Johnson (360cycling), Sam de la Mare (camsmajaco), Freddie Winkley (Harrogate Nova Race Team) and Brown. Together, they formed the move that would decide the race.
From there, the crucial question was not really who had made the split, but whether the six could convert it. They did. As the race moved off the large opening lap and onto the finishing circuits, the gap held when it might easily have come back. By the time the bell rang for the final lap, the front group had not only survived but strengthened its grip on the race.
Brown then judged the finish best, leading out the sprint and holding on to win, with de la Mare taking second and Winkley third.
William Brown (Shibden Apex RT) won the Hatherleigh Junior Road Race after a six-rider move, formed deep into the race on Devon’s rolling roads, stayed clear to decide the opening round of the 2026 British Cycling Junior Open Road Series.
Featured image: SWpix.com
Report
Bright, clear conditions greeted the field in Hatherleigh for a 108-kilometre race that was always likely to reward riders willing to force the issue rather than wait for the closing kilometres. On a rolling and selective course, the race never quite settled into anything passive; even before the decisive move, it had the feel of a day that would favour initiative.
That mattered because Hatherleigh was not simply another junior race on the calendar. It was the first of eight rounds in this year’s British Cycling Junior Open Road Series, the national sequence that runs through spring and summer before ending at the John Richards Junior Tour at the close of August. First rounds do not decide a series, but they do begin to show which riders and teams are prepared to shape it.
The early running was animated by Alex Box (Harrogate Nova Race Team), who helped draw out an initial move, before the race found its hinge point when Noah Wheller of Lee Valley Youth Cycling Club attacked alone and stayed clear for around 10 miles. That effort did not bring victory, but it did change the race. Five riders came across to him: local rider Jed Claxton (Wheal Velocity), Harper Johnson (360cycling), Sam de la Mare (camsmajaco), Freddie Winkley (Harrogate Nova Race Team) and Brown. Together, they formed the move that would decide the race.
From there, the crucial question was not really who had made the split, but whether the six could convert it. They did. As the race moved off the large opening lap and onto the finishing circuits, the gap held when it might easily have come back. By the time the bell rang for the final lap, the front group had not only survived but strengthened its grip on the race.
Brown then judged the finish best, leading out the sprint and holding on to win, with de la Mare taking second and Winkley third.
Results
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