JUNIOR star David Couch has booked his place at the National Youth Omnium final at Manchester in August after a successful final qualifying round at Palmer Park, Reading on Saturday.

The Rockbourne-based youngster was the fastest in the 200m time trial and won the sprint final. He also placed second in the scratch race and fourth in the points race.

A disappointing elimination race left him fifth overall on the day, but still gave Couch (Palmer Park Velo) second overall in the under-12s.

Couch, who attends Burgate School near Fordingbridge, has been cycling since the age of six and already has several national titles to his credit.

His goals for the remainder of the season are some podium finishes at the final in Manchester as well as at the British Cycling National Youth Track Championships at Newport in the same month.

  • Ensbury Park’s Roland Tilley (Ride) took the victory in the Poole Wheelers’ Nick Bateson Memorial Road event at the weekend on the demanding Wool circuit.

Part of the Wessex League, the 80km race started at the bottom of the climb out of Wool, leaving the field strung out in an event which takes the riders up the climb a total of five times.

Tilley used his vast experience to take his first win of the season from a dominant Jubilee trio of Rupert Silman, Simon Mears and Richard Eastham who went on to finish second, fourth and fifth respectively.

  • Dave Pickering (Bournemouth Jubilee Wheelers) scored his second victory of the season with a convincing win in the CC Weymouth 25-mile time trial, recording a time of 57:32.

The evergreen Terry Icke (Poole Wheelers) was in joint second with a time of 59:11.

Pickering also led Jubilee to the team prize with James Fuller (seventh, 1:03:36) and Barrie Stevens (11th, 1:05:47) also contributing to the combined time of 3:06:55.

The day before, Pickering finished fourth in the Team Axiom 10-mile event with a time of 20:48.

Team-mate Paul Jones, meanwhile, finished third in the Axiom 25-mile event with a time of 53:09.

Both Pickering and Jones are in action at the Wessex RC 50-mile event on Sunday. The race headquarters is at Lytchett Matravers Village Hall.