The provisional calendar for the 2025 Hertz FIM Trial World Championship has been confirmed with a seven-round schedule and an extended total of fourteen scoring days – two more than in 2024 –awaiting competitors with Great Britain and the United States of America returning to the series following a number of years’ absence.

The action will get under way over a month earlier than in 2024, opening with the TrialGP of Spain on 4-6 April at a new venue at Benahavis near Marbella before travelling west one week later for the TrialGP of Portugal at Viana do Castelo, another new location for the series, in the north of the country on the Atlantic coast.

Now firmly reestablished on the calendar following the pandemic, the much-loved Mobility Resort Motegi will host the TrialGP of Japan on 16-18 May, followed two weeks later by the TrialGP of France that will be staged for the first time at Calvi on the Mediterranean island of Corsica.

Returning to more familiar terrain, the TrialGP of San Marino will take place on 6-8 June at Baldasserona, a venue last used in 2023, before the championship breaks yet more new ground when it returns to the USA for the first time since 2017 with round six staged at Exeter, Rhode Island, on 11-13 July.

Following the summer break, the 2025 Hertz FIM Trial World Championship concludes with its first visit to Great Britain since 2018 with round seven at Geddington, the fifth new venue on the 2025 calendar, on 5-7 September.

Trial2 competitors will join TrialGP at all seven rounds while TrialGP Women competitors will miss just France and San Marino. Trial3 will only miss Japan and the USA while the Trial2 Women title will be decided in Spain, Portugal and Great Britain.

The FIM Trial des Nations will take place on 20-21 September at Tolmezzo in Italy that most recently featured on the calendar in 2021. A date and venue for the FIM Trial Vintage Trophy is still to be confirmed.

For regular updates check out our social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

The mighty Spanish men’s team of Toni Bou (Montesa), Gabriel Marcelli (Montesa) and Adam Raga (Sherco) swept to a twentieth consecutive victory at the 2024 FIM Trial des Nations on Sunday on home soil at Pobladura de las Regueras and Great Britain’s Emma Bristow (Sherco), Kaytlyn Adshead (TRRS) and Alice Minta (Scorpa) retained the women’s title. In the International Trophy it was Japan on top for the second successive year with Tsuyoshi Ogawa (Beta), Shinya Hirohata (Montesa) and Jin Kuroyama (Sherco) while Italy regained the Challenge des Nations title thanks to Fabio Mazzola (TRRS) and Martina Brandani (Sherco).

For regular updates check out our social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

The mighty Spanish men’s team of Toni Bou (Montesa), Gabriel Marcelli (Montesa) and Adam Raga (Sherco) swept to a record-breaking twentieth consecutive victory at the FIM Trial des Nations (TdN) this afternoon on home ground at Pobladura de las Regueras as Great Britain retained the ladies’ title, Japan made it back-to-back wins in the International Trophy class and victory in the Challenge des Nations went to Italy.

Toni Bou, Gabriel Marcelli and Adam Raga in complete control for Spanish men Emma Bristow, Kaytlyn Adshead and Alice Minta retain women’s title for Britain Japan and Italy on top in International Trophy and Challenge des Nations categories The annual contest to decide the world’s leading Trial nation has gone the Spaniards’ way every year it has been staged since 2004 and with a powerhouse team featuring three of this year’s four top-ranked TrialGP riders a different outcome never looked likely. Rain yesterday gave way to a foggy, overcast morning and grip was in short supply in the early stages on the challenging Circuito Permanente de Trial course that combined a mix of made-made sections constructed from huge rocks and massive logs with natural hazards plotted in a riverbed that made full use of the steep surrounding bankings. With each nations’ best two scores from each section to count, after seizing an immediate lead when they stayed clean through the opening section the Spanish trio never looked seriously troubled and their first lap total of thirteen on observation, even after eight time penalties were added, put them twenty-five marks clear of their nearest challengers Italy and thirty-two up on third-placed France. Further tightening the screw, Spain added seventeen on observation and four on time on lap two, ending the day on a total of forty-two to hammer home their dominance and say an emotional goodbye to Raga who, at forty-two years old, has just announced his retirement from top-flight Trial. “Today has been fantastic,” said Raga. “It was my last TdN so to get the victory is amazing. I am very, very happy.” Bronze medallists in 2023, the unchanged Italian team of Matteo Grattarola (Beta), Luca Petrella (GASGAS) and Lorenzo Gandola (Beta) were the only nation to avoid time penalties on their second lap and after scoring an additional forty marks to take their total to eighty-six they ended the day a clear second from France. Fielding Benoit Bincaz (Sherco), Hugo Dufrese (GASGAS) and Gaël Chatagno (Electric Motion), the French were in definite contention for silver after the opening lap, but lost ground in the closing stages to finish on one-hundred-and-six. This initially gave them third by two marks from the British team of Toby Martyn (Montesa), Jack Peace (Sherco) and Billy Green (Scorpa) before the British were disqualified for exceeding the event time limit which moved Norway – represented by Sondre Haga (GASGAS), Mats Nilsen (TRRS) and Jarand-Matias Vold Gunvaldsen (TRRS) – up a position on a total of one-hundred-and-seventy-three. The British team travelled to Spain as reigning women’s champions and with ten-time TrialGP Women champion Emma Bristow (Sherco) leading from the front with support from Kaytlyn Adshead (TRRS) and Alice Minta (Scorpa) they barely put a wheel wrong. Recording two laps of seven marks and with no time penalties, Britain’s total of fourteen saw them win by thirty from the Italian trio of Andrea Sofia Rabino (Beta), Alessia Bacchetta (GASGAS) and Martina Gallieni (Scorpa) whose score included six time penalties from the first lap. “The day has been very good and we all rode well,” said Adshead. “There were a few mistakes, but we worked well together as a team and finished out the day on top.” Women’s class winners of three of the previous four editions of the TdN, Spain gave their team an infusion of fresh blood this year with world number two Berta Abellan (Scorpa) joined by event debutantes Laia Pi (Beta) and Daniela Hernando (Beta). It was a bold move, but their inexperience showed and they ended the day one mark adrift of the Italians in third with five time penalties. The Czech team of Denisa Pechackova (TRRS) and Petra Budinova (TRRS) ended the day in fourth on fifty-six with Germany’s Theresa Angst (Beta), Sophia Ter Jung (TRRS) and Vivian Wachs (TRRS) completing the top five on sixty-five with thirteen time penalties. Competition is always fierce in the second-tier International Trophy class and for the second consecutive year it was Japan who ran out winners with their team of Tsuyoshi Ogawa (Beta), Shinya Hirohata (Montesa) and Jin Kuroyama (Sherco) establishing a strong advantage on the opening lap and then holding on to win on fifteen. Represented by Josh Roper (GASGAS), Alex Myers (Scorpa) and Alex Niederer (Beta), the USA were just three behind in second with Germany’s Jonathan Heidel (Beta), Rodney Bereiter (Beta) and Hendrik Binder (Beta) completing the podium on nineteen. Contested by two-rider, mixed-gender teams, the third edition of the Challenge des Nations was won by 2022 winners Italy represented by Fabio Mazzola (TRRS) and Martina Brandani (Sherco) on fifty-one, eleven ahead of defending champions Norway who fielded Jonas Jørgensen (Beta) and Seline Meling (Beta). Germany’s Ben Reumschuessel (TRRS) and Hannah Schneider (Beta) were third on ninety-two. “We are very, very happy with this victory,” said Mazzola. “The sections were really cool and we got the result we wanted. The TdN concludes top-flight outdoor Trial competition for another year, but for regular news check out our social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram – just search for TrialGP.

For regular updates check out our social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

With the Spanish men’s team expected to continue their dominance of the FIM Trial des Nations (TdN) this coming weekend (21-22 September) in Pobladura de las Regueras in Spain, a look through the archives shows that the last country to defeat the competition’s powerhouse nation was Great Britain all the way back in 2003. Younger fans will be familiar with the Hemingway name through the heroics of brothers Harry and George who between them have dominated the FIM Trial3 World Championship for the last three years, but how many have heard of Ben Hemingway who was a member of Britain’s victorious team twenty-one years ago? Now aged forty-seven, Hemingway – who is the uncle of Britain’s two brightest teenaged talents and a cousin of seven-time TrialGP champion Dougie Lampkin – was very much the accidental hero of Team GB in 2003 after travelling to Lavarone in the foothills of the Italian Alps purely to cheer on his compatriots. Back then TdN teams comprised four riders and Britain, the reigning champions, were fielding an unchanged quartet of Dougie Lampkin, Steve Colley, Sam Connor and Graham Jarvis, but when one of their key riders was taken ill the night before the competition their title defence looked to be over before it even started. Luckily, they had Hemingway waiting in the wings… “I only went out to watch,” he said, “but Steve got food poisoning and couldn’t ride so on the morning of the Trial I got a knock on my van door. Luckily, I’d packed my van like I would for a world championship round so I had my bike, my brother Dan’s bike and all my riding gear with me. I even had my licences. So Dan minded for me, I rode and we ended up winning.” Hemingway, who to this day remains heavily involved with international Trial, had made his FIM Trial World Championship debut as a teenager in the 1990s and already had a bronze medal from the 2000 TdN at Seva in Spain so he was an automatic pick for the role as an emergency fill-in rider. “It was a massive privilege, the only major problem was I didn’t have a green helmet. I tried to wear Steve’s, but it was too small for my big head. Luckily, my helmet had a Union Jack painted on it.” Despite suffering a migraine on the day, Hemingway played his part to perfection and Britain defeated the Spanish team of Adam Raga, Albert Cabestany, Marc Colomer and Marc Freixa by a single mark. “Winning was an absolutely unbelievable feeling. It was totally out of the blue, but all our stars aligned and everyone rode really well. It was a really good Spanish team and the result was so close, but we all rode so well that day. “As I get older I’m becoming aware of what a fantastic achievement it was. It’s hard to believe that was twenty-one years ago and it’s always nice to remind myself that I was part of the team. Representing my country was a massive thing for me, it’s such a privilege to ride for your country. It means so much. “The TdN is such a unique event. Trial riders are all friendly people anyway, but it’s amazing how close your team-mates become after you’ve competed against them throughout the year and the minders are such a big part of the team as well. It’s a fantastic event.” The 2024 FIM Trial des Nations at the Circuito Permanente de Trial is due to get under way at 09:00 local time on Sunday (22 September) and will be streamed LIVE on FIM-MOTO-TV with a season pass – that also covers all seven rounds of the Hertz FIM Trial World Championship – priced at €34.90. For more information click here.

For regular updates check out our social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

With home advantage, a huge talent pool to choose from and an unbroken win-streak that goes all the way back to 2004, the Spanish men start as overwhelming favourites for victory in the 2024 FIM Trial des Nations (TdN) this coming weekend (21-22 September), but it is much less clear cut in the women’s class as well as both the International Trophy and Challenge des Nations categories.

• Spain start favourites for twentieth consecutive TdN victory
• Great Britain defend TdN Women crown at Pobladura de las Regueras
• International Trophy and Challenge des Nations titles up for grabs

Staged at Pobladura de las Regueras in north-west Spain, the venue was last used for top-flight competition when a round of the Hertz FIM Trial World Championship was held there in 2021 so many competitors should be familiar with the purpose-built Circuito Permanente de Trial’s mix of man-made and natural sections.

The Spanish have selected the now eighteen-time TrialGP champion Toni Bou (Montesa) to lead them into battle with back-up from vice-champion Gabriel Marcelli (Montesa) and fourth-placed Adam Raga (GASGAS).

While it would be unwise to bet on anything other than a twentieth consecutive Spanish victory, the remaining men’s medals are very much up for grabs with last year’s runners-up France, Italy and Great Britain all, on paper at least, looking very evenly matched.

Returning to the three-man line-up that won bronze in 2022, French hopes rest on the shoulders of Benoit Bincaz (Sherco) and Hugo Dufrese (GASGAS) – ninth and tenth in TrialGP this year – along with Gaël Chatagno (Electric Motion) who won the final day of this season’s Trial2 competition on his way to sixth in the championship.

In contrast, Italy field an unchanged team from the trio that won bronze last year with fifth-ranked TrialGP rider Matteo Grattarola (Beta) lining up alongside Luca Petrella (GASGAS) and Lorenzo Gandola (Beta), who ended 2024 in twelfth and thirteenth in the premier division, while Great Britain opt for Toby Martyn (Montesa) who was eleventh in TrialGP alongside Jack Peace (Sherco) and Billy Green (Scorpa) who were first and third in Trial2.

The entry is completed by Norway with Sondre Haga (GASGAS), Mats Nilsen (TRRS) and Jarand-Matias Vold Gunvaldsen (TRRS) who were seventh, eleventh and seventeenth in Trial2 this season.

Since 2006 the battle for supremacy in the women’s category has been between two nations with Great Britain winning nine times and Spain eight out of the last seventeen editions.

Great Britain will start the day as defending champions after their dramatic four-mark victory over Spain at Auron in France in 2023 with the unchanged line-up of Emma Bristow (Sherco), Alice Minta and Kaytlyn Adshead (Scorpa). With Bristow – who last weekend clinched her tenth TrialGP Women title – retiring from top-flight competition this season, victory would be a fitting flourish to an incredible career and with this season’s sixth and seventh-ranked riders in the premier women’s class as back-up it is a very strong team.

Spain, by contrast, have just Berta Abellan (Scorpa) from their 2023 team with this year’s TrialGP Women vice-champion joined by Laia Pi (Beta) and Daniela Hernando (Beta) – ranked second and fifth in Trial2 Women – who are making their first appearances in the competition.

Just three marks separated third-placed Norway from France and Italy in fourth and fifth in 2023 and it is all-change for the Norwegians this year with Wilde Moi (Beta), eleventh in Trial2 Women, stepping up alongside Maria Ersland (Vertigo) and Kristiane Blesvik (GASGAS) who have not competed on the world stage this season.

France will again field Naomi Monnier (Montesa) and Alycia Soyer (TRRS) – fourth and eleventh in TrialGP Women this year – who will be joined by Margaux Pena (Electric Motion) who was eighth in Trial2 Women, while Italy is represented by Andrea Sofia Rabino (Beta), Alessia Bacchetta (GASGAS) and Martina Gallieni (Scorpa) who ended this season’s TrialGP Women campaign placed third, eighth and twelfth.

Germany, the USA, Australia, Canada and the Czech Republic will also field teams in a truly international class.

A very healthy entry of eighteen countries from four continents will contest the second-tier International Trophy, headed by last year’s top three of Japan, Germany and the Czech Republic who will face strong opposition from nations including the USA, Australia, Finland and Andorra.

Now in its third year, the Challenge des Nation category is for two-rider, mixed-gender teams and Norway have put the defence of the title in the hands of Jonas Jørgensen (Beta) and Seline Meling (Beta) with strong opposition likely to come from 2022 winners Italy with Germany, Sweden, Portugal and the USA among the other nations competing.

The competition at Pobladura de las Regueras is due to get under way at 09:00 local time on Sunday (22 September) and will be streamed LIVE on FIM-MOTO-TV with a season pass – that also covers all seven rounds of the Hertz FIM Trial World Championship – priced at €34.90. For more information click here.

For regular updates check out our social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

British celebrations are expected to continue long into the night after Emma Bristow (Sherco) and Jack Peace (Sherco) clinched the TrialGP Women and Trial2 crowns at the final round of the 2024 Hertz FIM Trial World Championship – the TrialGP of Spain – at Ripoll this afternoon as Toni Bou (Montesa) and Martina Brandani (Sherco), with the TrialGP title and FIM Women’s Trial2 World Cup already decided in their favour, signed off on top.

• TrialGP of Spain marks end of FIM Trial World Championship’s Golden Jubilee year
• Emma Bristow and Jack Peace secure TrialGP Women and Trial2 titles
• Toni Bou and Martina Brandani complete double wins in Ripoll

Another cold morning gave way to a bright, warm day as the FIM Trial World Championship’s fiftieth anniversary season – which also marks the twenty-fifth year of female involvement in the series – concluded in the Catalan region of north-east Spain.

With only a few minor overnight alterations to yesterday’s sections, competitors again faced the challenge posed by near-vertical bankings studded with imposing rocks along with a series of hazards in dry stream beds where grip was in short supply and pinpoint throttle control a necessity.

Starting the day with a seven-point lead over Spain’s Berta Abellan (Scorpa) who won yesterday’s TrialGP Women contest, Bristow – who is retiring from top-flight Trial after this season – knew only a disaster could keep her from a tenth title and the thirty-three-year-old ended the opening lap in third on ten marks, four behind Abellan and two adrift of Italy’s Andrea Sofia Rabino (Beta).

Even if Abellan won, third or better would be good enough for Bristow – who last dropped out of the top three at an FIM World Championship round all the way back in 2012 – and just a few marks separated the leaders when Rabino lost three marks in section nine, allowing the British rider to move into second, one behind Abellan.

A stray dab by Abellan on section eleven where Bristow went clean tied the class and when both produced faultless rides through the man-made final section it was Bristow who, with a miserly second lap total of just two, got the verdict on a tie-break to ensure a fitting end to her incredibly successful FIM Trial World Championship career.

“It’s been a tough weekend,” said Bristow. “Mentally it’s been hard because the results have been so close and I didn’t get much sleep last night, but I got a great result today and I’m really proud to go out with a win.”

Rabino maintained the pressure on the leading pair, but ended the day two behind on fourteen with Britain’s Kaytlyn Adshead (TRRS) winning a tie-break for fourth with Naomi Monnier (Montesa) from France on a total of thirty-four.

Having come within one section of sewing up the Trial2 championship yesterday, Peace still led his title rival Arnau Farré (Sherco) by sixteen points and he spent much of a very low-scoring day just a mark or two behind the Spaniard.

The twenty-four-year-old former British national champion actually posted the lowest observation score of three on the opening lap, but two time penalties meant at the halfway stage Peace was in a three-way tie for fourth with Farré and his compatriot Francesc Moret (Montesa) as Gaël Chatagno (Electric Motion), Harry Hemingway (Beta) and Alex Canales (Sherco) shared the lead on four.

Losing just a single dab on lap two, Chatagno ensured a sensational second victory for electric-powered machines this season with Farré matching his solitary loss to climb to second following a tie-break with Hemingway as Canales took fourth on seven, but just one mark further back in fifth it was Peace who stole the limelight as he sewed up the title.

“What a crazy, crazy day and an unexpected result,” said Chatagno. “I have been struggling a little bit to make thepodium this year since Japan, but today I just tried to enjoy the bike and finally I got the win so I’m very happy.”

For much of the day it was too close to call at the front of the TrialGP field where, with the title already decided in favour of defending champion Bou, Jaime Busto (GASGAS) was trying to claw back a five-point deficit in the championship to snatch second place from fellow Spaniard Gabriel Marcelli (Montesa).

With the leading five riders all incurring a single time penalty on the opening lap, Busto led at the halfway stage on ten with Bou on twelve and Marcelli on seventeen as the top three began to distance themselves from the chasing pack.

Any hopes Busto had of taking a second win this season disappeared when halfway around the lap he suffered back-to-back maximums and although Bou picked up a five on section nine, the eighteen-time TrialGP champion did enough to claim victory on eighteen, four ahead of Busto.

“It has been so close to a perfect season – just second once – and I think it has been one of the best seasons of my career,” said Bou. “I have felt amazing and all year I have been super-happy.”

Marcelli brought it home another ten points behind in third to secure the first championship one-two for the team since Takahisa Fujinami and Dougie Lampkin dominated the 2004 season and Jorge Casales (TRRS) took fourth on thirty-eight, two ahead of Adam Raga (Sherco).

With the FIM Women’s Trial2 World Cup assured after her victory yesterday, the pressure was off Brandani and the seventeen-year-old Italian posted lap scores of seven and eight to run out winner by five ahead of Laia Pi (Beta) from Spain.

“I liked the sections today and I feel I rode very well,” said Brandani. “I’m the champion and I’m very, very happy.”

Daniela Hernando Martinez (Beta) was a career-best third on twenty-three after winning a tie-break with Sara Trentini (TRRS) who secured third in the championship from Norway’s Seline Meling (Beta) by two points.

With the 2024 Hertz FIM Trial World Championship now consigned to the history books, global focus shifts to the FIM Trial des Nations that takes place at Pobladura de las Regueras in Spain this coming weekend (21-22 September).

All the action will be streamed LIVE on FIM-MOTO-TV with a season pass covering all seven rounds and the FIM Trial des Nations priced at €34.90. For more information click here.

For regular updates check out our social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

With three titles on the line and just two days of points-scoring competition remaining, tensions were understandably running high on day one of the TrialGP of Spain – the final round of the 2024 Hertz FIM Trial World Championship – at Ripoll.

• Toni Bou takes tenth win of the season on day one of TrialGP of Spain
• Martina Brandani lifts FIM Women’s Trial2 World Cup
• TrialGP Women and Trial2 titles to be decided on final day

Following a warm, dry day in the foothills of the Pyrenees, the destination of the FIM Women’s Trial2 World Cup was decided in favour of seventeen-year-old Martina Brandani (Sherco) from Italy. The fight, however, will go down to the wire on the final day of the season in TrialGP Women after home favourite Berta Abellan (Scorpa) beat reigning champion Emma Bristow (Sherco) on a tie-break and in Trial2 where Britain’s Jack Peace (Sherco) had the crown within his grasp, only to let it slip in the very last section of the Trial.

With the premier TrialGP category already decided at the previous round in favour of now eighteen-time champion Toni Bou (Montesa), it was business as usual for the superstar Spaniard who took his tenth win of the season as behind him a fierce battle raged for this year’s remaining medals.

The Spanish trio of Gabriel Marcelli (Montesa), Jaime Busto (GASGAS) and Adam Raga (Sherco) were all in contention at the start of the day for silver and bronze and at the halfway stage Busto’s score of twelve put him just one behind Bou with Raga on sixteen and Marcelli back in fifth on twenty-eight including a time penalty.

With the opening sections plotted on extremely steep, wooded bankings studded with rocks, the action then headed to a series of technical dry stream beds and imposing steps with the natural hazards superseded by the huge rock slabs that comprised the spectacular man-made final section.

“Today had a different feel after I won the title in Cahors,” said Bou. “It was a fight to the end with Jaime, but finally I won which was very important for the team.”

Having started the day with a seven-point cushion over Busto in the contest for second in the championship, at the end of the opening lap Marcelli’s ‘virtual’ advantage was down to just one, but the all-action Galician fought back fiercely on lap two to claw his way back to third another sixteen marks further back to maintain a five-point lead from Busto heading into tomorrow’s final day of competition.

Marcelli’s climb up the leaderboard came at the expense of Raga whose total of forty-three was good enough for fourth, five clear of Spain’s Miquel Gelabert (Vertigo), which effectively puts an end to his hopes of ending the year in the top three.

Heading to Ripoll ten points clear of Abellan in TrialGP Women, it was always unlikely that Bristow would secure her tenth crown in eleven years on the opening day, but any hopes she had of extending her lead ended on the first lap.

The British rider’s score of seven at the hallway stage placed her three behind Abellan as the leading pair began to open up a gap at the front with Alice Minta (Scorpa) best of the rest on eleven that put her two clear of Italy’s Andrea Sofia Rabino (Beta) who in turn was one ahead of Naomi Monnier (Montesa) from France.

An unblemished second lap from Bristow heaped the pressure on Abellan, but the twenty-four-year-old kept her cool and added just three more marks to her score to end the day tied at the top before getting the decision on a tie-break.

“I’m very, very happy,” said Abellan. “I enjoyed the sections a lot and, of course, I am very happy with my victory.”

A further thirteen points behind, Minta matched her best finish of the season in third with Monnier fourth on twenty-three after winning a tie-break with Rabino. The result keeps Abellan’s dream of a first FIM World Championship alive, but Bristow still holds a seven-point advantage that looks unlikely to be overturned.

Having set the pace in Trial2 for much of the season, Peace knew he could wrap up his first FIM World Championship a day early and after a close and competitive opening lap it remained a very real possibility.

Britain’s Harry Hemingway (Beta) led on four, one ahead of Peace’s main title rival Arnau Farré (Sherco) from Spain who was three clear of defending champion Billy Green (Scorpa), who incurred a time penalty, Peace and former champion Sondre Haga (GASGAS) from Norway on the electric motorcycle who were locked together on eight.

After finishing second on five occasions this year, Green finally put in a champion’s performance when he added just two further marks to his score on the second lap to take his first win of the season on a total of ten with Hemingway next on thirteen.

“As always in Trial2 it was very tight,” said Green. “Unfortunately, it’s taken me until now to get a win, but it makes all the effort worthwhile.”

Farré’s score of sixteen earned him the final step of the podium on a tie-break with Haga and the top five was completed by Trial3 champion George Hemingway who parted with just seventeen on a very impressive Trial2 debut.

Peace arrived at the last section of the Trial leading Farré by three marks which was good enough to sew up the championship, but a technical infringement earned him a maximum and as a result he dropped to sixth on eighteen. Despite this setback, the twenty-four-year-old still leads by sixteen points and knows only a disaster can keep him from striking gold tomorrow.

A double victory at the opening round of the FIM Women’s Trial2 World Cup in Germany handed Brandani an early advantage and after finishing second in Belgium she travelled to Spain with a twelve-point advantage over her closest rival Laia Pi (Beta).

With the title in her sight, Brandani ended the first lap one mark behind Norway’s Seline Meling (Beta) on nine before a final lap of four gave her the win and the title.

“Today has gone really well,” said Brandani. “I really liked the sections and I’m very happy.”

Meling, who won last time out in Belgium, was second on seventeen with Italy’s Sara Trentini (TRRS) two marks further adrift in third and with Pi only managing sixth on home soil there is now a three-way fight for the remaining podium positions with a single point separating Meling, Trentini and Pi.

A maximum on his second visit to section two dropped Bou to second behind Busto, but the pendulum swung back in the reigning champion’s favour when Busto lost his balance on section six and with his advantage restored the thirty-seven-year-old needed no second invitation and claimed victory on nineteen, three clear of his younger rival.

For regular updates check out our social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

A fabulous feeling of nostalgia hung heavily in the air at Ripoll when the third annual FIM Trial Vintage Trophy celebrated the sport’s rich history, sharing centre stage with the modern maestros of the Hertz FIM Trial World Championship at the TrialGP of Spain, the seventh and concluding round of the series’ Golden Jubilee year. Sport’s illustrious history celebrated at TrialGP of Spain Jean-Philippe Lerda retains the FIM Trial Vintage Trophy Philippe Berlatier completes FIM Trial Vintage Motorcycle Trophy hat-trick Run under ‘no-stop’ rules with scores from Friday’s competition combined with today’s results and then moderated according to a rider’s age to determine the overall winner, old friendships were strengthened and rivalries renewed as famous names from the championship’s glittering past came together to compete for the FIM Trial Vintage Trophy and FIM Trial Vintage Motorcycle Trophy. Having failed to retain the FIM Trial Vintage Trophy last year at Auron in France, five-time Trial des Nations winner Philippe Berlatier was back looking for revenge and the fifty-nine-year-old Frenchman drew first blood on Friday with victory on his 1981 350cc Bultaco from his compatriot and defending champion Jean-Philippe Lerda who was riding a 1982 240cc Fantic. Showing that he was still a force to be reckoned with, sixty-two-year-old Gilles Burgat – who was FIM Trial World Champion in 1981 and to this day remains the youngest rider ever to win the crown – piloted his 1982 280cc SWM into third before a big gap back to Swiss rider Oskar Walther who was mounted on a 1982 250cc Fantic. With sections designed to be appropriate for the age of the motorcycles, Lerda struck back today with his total of two on observation putting him six clear of Berlatier and once the results had been moderated it was the thirty-six-year-old who narrowly retained the FIM Trial Vintage Trophy with Burgat third ahead of a distant Walther. “I’m very happy to win today,” said Lerda. “This is a dream for me.” While disappointed to lose out to his younger rival, Berlatier had the consolation of winning a third consecutive FIM Trial Vintage Motorcycle Trophy for best performance on an authentic vintage motorcycle ahead of Switzerland’s Hans Zenklusen who was riding a 1982 250cc Fantic. Competing over a modified route, competition was also fierce in the Trial Vintage Support class where following Friday’s opening day it was incredibly close between home rider Josep Auferil Pamplona on his 1985 230cc Montesa and Italy’s Enzo Afri on a 1975 125cc Guzzi with French rider Patrick Pissis steering his 1989 249cc Fantic into third. Picking up where they left off at the start of day two, sixty-one-year-old Afri turned the tables on sixty-six-year-old Auferil Pamplona to claim the overall with sixty-nine-year-old Pissis, the oldest rider in the competition, completing the podium. Away from the action, an exhibition of championship-winning motorcycles inside the cloister of the beautiful Monastery of Santa Maria de Ripoll – which was open for visitors following the prize-giving ceremony and World Championship Anniversary Celebration – proved incredibly popular. With three-time FIM Trial World Champion Yrjo Vesterinen acting as Master of Ceremony and former world champions including Jordi Tarres, Tommi Ahvala, Marc Colomer, Dougie Lampkin, Takahisa Fujinami, Adam Raga, Toni Bou, Iris Kramer and Thierry Michaud, the FIM Trial Commission Director, all in attendance, it was a magical two days of nostalgia.

For regular updates check out our social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

This coming weekend’s TrialGP of Spain at Ripoll doesn’t just mark the conclusion of the 2024 Hertz FIM Trial World Championship, it also heralds the end of reigning FIM Women’s Trial World Champion Emma Bristow’s career in the sport’s elite.

Modest and unassuming, the thirty-three-year-old is calling time this season on an exemplary career and with a ten-point lead heading into the championship decider she is in pole position to sign off with an incredible tenth title in eleven years.

“I’m feeling good,” she said. “I’ve just picked up a nice fresh bike so I’ve got a brand-new steed for this weekend and body wise I’m in good shape and mentally I’m just not putting any pressure on myself. It’s my last TrialGP event so I want to enjoy it, but I do feel quite emotional. It was not an easy decision because it’s been part of my life for a long time, but I’ve made it now.”

Bristow, who last year was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire – a ceremonial honour also bestowed on Dougie Lampkin – in recognition of her outstanding achievement in the sport, made her FIM Trial World Championship debut in 2006 when she was just fifteen years old and has not dropped out of the top two since 2011.

Now, after spending almost two decades chasing her dreams, she is ready to take her foot off the gas or, more appropriately, her hand off the throttle.

“What a lot of people don’t see are the struggles along the way. Behind the scenes there’s a lot of time and effort with training and travelling and it has to stop at some point. Over the years the sport has taken me to some amazing places and I’ve been incredibly fortunate, but this feels like the right time to call it a day.

“Hopefully, if all goes well this weekend it will be another title which will be an absolute dream. I never set out to win ten FIM World Championships and just to be in a position to do that is amazing.”

While she will take a step back from top-flight competition, Bristow will continue to put back into a sport that has brought her so much success and will work closely with Sherco – who she has ridden for since 2013 – as she helps develop the next generation of riders.

“I’m heavily involved with Sherco in the UK and this year we’ve helped a young rider – Euan Sim – take on the Trial3 World Championship which has been really rewarding. Obviously, we know what it’s all about and what to do and what not to do and it feels great to pass on the experience I have. That will be a new chapter, although I’m not saying I’m going to hang up my boots completely because I’d never do that. I enjoy riding too much to stop.

“Sherco have been amazing throughout my career. I couldn’t have done it without them, that’s for sure, so for them to continue supporting me after my career as well is a really nice touch.”

Bristow says she has enjoyed too many highs to single out any particular moment, choosing instead to reflect on her entire career.

“Every single title has been very special for me and I’ve loved the buzz of winning and then chasing another one. Even before a championship is over I’m thinking about the following season – I’m always thinking ahead.”

The action at Ripoll is due to get under way at 09:00 local time on Saturday and will be streamed LIVE on FIM-MOTO-TV with a season pass covering all seven rounds and the FIM Trial des Nations priced at €34.90. For more information click here.

For regular updates check out our social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Coming at the conclusion of the fiftieth anniversary season of the Hertz FIM Trial World Championship which also marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of female involvement in the series, it is highly appropriate that this weekend’s TrialGP of Spain will also include the third FIM Trial Vintage Trophy, an annual celebration of the sport’s rich and illustrious history.

The event will be staged tomorrow and Saturday (13-14 September) at Ripoll in the Catalan region of Spain, close to the border with France, with riders competing for two impressive pieces of silverware – the FIM Trial Vintage Trophy and the FIM Trial Vintage Motorcycle Trophy. Run under ‘non-stop’ rules with scores over both days combined to decide the final positions and results moderated according to a rider’s age, once again there will be two adapted lines. The Blue line will be for competitors in the 2024 FIM Trial Vintage Trophy – open to all period-correct twin-shock machines – as well as for competitors in the FIM Trial Vintage Motorcycle Trophy, reserved for twin-shock machines of unmodified origins, while the Green ‘support’ line will offer easier alternative routes. Defending FIM Trial Vintage Trophy champion Jean-Philippe Lerda will be aiming to repeat his 2023 victory at Auron in France, although this year the Frenchman has opted to ride a 1982 240cc Fantic rather than the Yamaha he took the title on. Among the riders he will need to defeat to retain the crown are the French pairing of Philippe Berlatier and Gilles Burgat who were both superstars of the sport in the 1980s and early 1990s. Berlatier, a five-time FIM Trial des Nations winner, won both the FIM Trial Vintage Trophy and FIM Trial Vintage Motorcycle Trophy at the inaugural event in 2022 at Monza in Italy and retained the FIM Trial Vintage Motorcycle Trophy last year. With his sixtieth birthday just two months away he remains a fierce competitor and armed with his immaculate 1981 350cc Bultaco would dearly like to win both trophies again. Burgat, who celebrates his sixty-third birthday in November, was second behind his old TdN team-mate at Monza and the 1981 FIM Trial World Champion – who, forty-three years later remains the youngest rider ever to win the title – will be aiming to go one better this time around on a 1982 280cc SWM. Master of Ceremony will be three-time FIM Trial World Champion Yrjo Vesterinen who will watch the action unfold alongside other notable spectators including former gold medallists Jordi Tarres, Tommi Ahvala, Marc Colomer, Dougie Lampkin, Takahisa Fujinami, Adam Raga, Toni Bou, Iris Kramer and Thierry Michaud, the FIM Trial Commission Director. If that’s not enough to get Trial enthusiasts reaching for their autograph books, there will also be an exhibition of championship-winning motorcycles inside the cloister of the beautiful Monastery of Santa Maria de Ripoll which will be open for visitors on Saturday afternoon. The action is due to get under way tomorrow at 13:00 local time and on Saturday at 09:00 local time. For more information click here.

For regular updates check out our social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.