UCI Gravel World Series: Anet Barrera Esparza and Ulises Alfredo Castillo Soto win Gravel Arteaga

Ulises Alfredo Castillo Soto (Olinka Cycling) and Anet Barrera Esparza claimed victory at the first UCI Gravel World Series event in Mexico, Gravel Arteaga and in the process also clinched the national gravel titles, which were also decided at the event.

The 133km race, started and finished in Coahuila, Arteaga, had more than 85% gravel roads and about 2,200m of elevation gain. The competition played out through high mountain stretches, with altitudes above 2,700m above sea level as well as sections through ridges and forests.

Mexico’s Castillo Soto won the elite men’s event and national title with a time of 4:16:15, sprinting across the line just ahead of Jose Antonio Prieto De Luna, while more than 8 minutes later Angel Julian Camacho Gutierrez crossed the line to take third.

Barrera claimed the Mexican title and elite women’s race in emphatic style, with a time of 5:08:01 and a clear-cut solo victory. She crossed the line more than thirteen minutes ahead of second-placed Sara Roel and then it was a further eight minutes back to Venezuela’s Fabiola Ariana Tucci Ron.

It was one of two series events over the weekend, with Mads Würtz Schmidt and Femke Markus also claiming the European Gravel titles on Sunday. Both races, like all other series events, offered the opportunity for top finishers to qualify for the October 10 and 11 UCI Gravel World Championships, which this year is being held in Nannup, Western Australia.