While Emma Bristow continues to make TrialGP Women headlines – and deservedly so with eight Hertz FIM World Trial Championships in nine years – there is another British Lioness who is beginning to assert herself in the class for elite female riders.

At just nineteen years old, Alice Minta (Scorpa) currently sits fourth in the championship standings and in only her third season in the class is six points adrift of third after three rounds and six scoring days.

This strong start to the season has seen her rewarded with two podium finishes after she came home third on day two in Portugal and again on the opening day in Japan, with the result in Gouveia especially sweet as it was her first visit to the box in TrialGP Women.

“I was buzzing,” she said. “To be honest, I needed it. I knew I could be up there on the podium but the day before I was not consistent enough.

“I was not actually happy with my performance on the day I got on the podium. I think it came down to the last five sections. My brother told me that if I really wanted to be on the podium I had to clean all the remaining sections and that is what I did and I think I was two marks in front of fourth place.”

Minta’s Trial2 Women debut came in 2019 and she made an immediate impact, only losing out on the title to Germany’s Vivien Wachs on a tie-break.
“I was surprised when I started getting podiums straight away because there were riders who had been in that category for a long time so I did not think I was going to beat them. After that first round I knew I could do it [so] I did my year in 2019 and moved straight up.”

The pandemic in 2020 resulted in a severely abbreviated world championship season which Minta opted to sit out before making her class debut the following year when she immediately impressed, ending the season in a strong seventh.

“I think I had a couple of fifths and there was a ninth I was not happy about but you cannot win everything. The ability is definitely higher but it is still a big mind game and it is all about keeping your head. That is what I have figured out this year.”

Towards the end of 2021 – after helping her country to second at the Trial Des Nations – she ruptured an ACL contesting the British championship which cancelled out much of the following year, but her results so far in 2023 speak for themselves.

At this level ambition is vital – you have to set your sights high in order to progress in such a competitive class – although at the moment Minta is focusing on a much more grounded goal.

“I want to be world champion but I would just love to become a factory rider. That has been my ambition since day one and I do not think I’m far off it. I would definitely like to ride full-time but at the moment that is not possible.”

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