There has been a noticable rise in the standard of riding in the feminine class over the last few years, and there are some exciting young women athletes competing internationally. Many we don't really know a lot about as there is very little media from them, or they have such a hectic competition and training/work/study schedule that they kind of fly under the radar.
I recently spent some time with Gemma Abant when she came to Australia for a holiday. As a follower of the sport and part time bike trial coach, it was a fantastic opportunity to spend time with an athlete that has put in years of dedication to the sport they love. Gemma has reaped the rewards of those efforts and remained humble and approachable. I had the privilege of riding with her and getting to know the person as she shared some of her riding history with me. I also watched her training, and could see the pleasure she got from doing what she loves the most.... riding trials.
I was in Saalfelden (Austria 2012) to see her clinch her tenth world title under quite trying circumstance. I watched her closely during the competition and it is impossible to have anything but respect for the concentration, strength of character and sheer determination it took for her to win that world championship, I can't imagine what it's taken to win ten! This shy, diminuative young woman has an inner strength that stunned me, and like so many of the great competitors in sport, she is never truely satisfied with her achievements. Morg and I grabbed a camera and took some random footage of Gem when she was training on our back yard junk pile. It is quite different to the obstacles she normally rides and in the beginning a few moves gave her some trouble, but the professional rider came out straight away and the change in her was obvious. The concentration was turned up a to 10 and her determination to 11!
I learned over a few weeks that it didn't matter what she applied herself to, Gemma immersed herself into it 100% - work, riding.... even dinner! We gave the footage to Gemma and she put together a video to remember her time here in Brisbane. I hope you enjoy watching her play.
Cam https://vimeo.com/62805570