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FIM Individual World Trials'Championship Round 1 : Irish GP f2ampkin ComeJ Out <.Swingin:.. ... WHILE THE SPANIARDS AWAIT THEIR FATE could have contested and possibly won the Junior class. He took his first World points in Ireland. DAY DNE After the easy section one, a lot of time was wasted before entering section two, which featured a high wall on sea rocks after a narrow bend. Only Kuroyama was able to clean it, (Left) Reigning World Champion Dougie Lampkin struck first during round one ot the FIM World Trials Championship in Ulster, Ireland. The Brit wasn't at his most brilliant, but consistency netted the win. I • n.........anl-MICa • Incr.'-.a ,... with ........ but even more attention was focused on Raga and Lampkin. Both disappointed the fans. The Spaniard made a bad three, while the Brit launched his bike before the end of the first wall, collecting a heavy five. Fujinami only dabbed in the section, and this gave him the confidence necessary to continue the round on a high. Lampkin recovered soon, cleaning and dabbing other difficult sections, while the surprise Kuroyama yielded, making stupid mistakes before the end of the loop. So at half competition, Fujinami led, scoring seven points, just one less than Lampkin (8) and five less than ......... • tal_ to . . . from tile top of tile IMderII a..... to -.nth overall. in Northern Ireland. Just to underline the difference between the Indoor and Outdoor worlds, riders like Takahisa Fujinami, never competitive in the arenas, were much more competitive in this event. The Japanese presented himself as confident and focused, and he scored an important win on Saturday. Lampkin was just behind, however, while the rest of the challengers were off the pace. But when the competition became tougher the day after, the old lion Lampkin was ready to teach a lesson to everybody. It was a lesson not in how to ride - many of his rivals are riding as well as he, or even better but a lesson in how to be constant in performance. A lesson on how to recover quickly after carding a five. What Lampkin has at the moment appears to be the strongest mindset. Also surprising was the riding of Japanese star Kenichi Kuroyama, who was best of all for the first half of the competition on both Saturday and Sunday, only to completely tank in the second half of each day. Meanwhile, the Spanish machine continued to supply good riders. It was a very good day for Antonio Bou, who bravely decided to ride directly in the top class, even though he STORY AND PHOTOS BY MARIO CANDELLONE BANGOR, IRELAND, APR. 5-6 T. or the first time at Bangor, in Ulster, T' the Trials World Championship opened its doors to uncertainty and controversy, as the Spanish riders are under suspension for their strike in the Spanish Championship two weeks ago. The ban, which will last for three months, was supposed to render them ineligible for World events, but the Spaniards claimed it should include only those events held on Spanish soil. The decision to accept them at the Irish GP was made at the last minute on Friday afternoon, and it was provisory, as the trials world awaits an official verdict from the International Federation. That decision is expected next week. The decision could have a great impact on the World series, as it will hold the fate of Spaniards Adam Raga and Albert Cabestany, the two predicted to be the biggest threats to six-time World Trials Champion Doug Lampkin. In any case, Lampkin, the current World number one, did not appear to be bothered, as he handily won the opening round of the series in Bangor 44 APRIL 23, 2003' cue I e n eVIl's BRIEFLY••• The Spanish saga: At the second round of the Spanish Championship. held at Jaen. Andalusia. all the riders except Freixa (who was threatened with termination by the Montesa factory) and Pascuet (who now works for the Spanish Federation) abandoned the race after the first loop (ridden just for the public) to protest against their Federation for two reasons: first. because they do not want a foreign champion. They agreed to open the championship to Lampkin. Fujinami. etc.. but only under the condition that those riders could not take points for the championship. Second. the Spaniards were protesting the time limit for the sections (60 seconds instead of 90 adopted all over the world). As a result. all the riders (27. to be precise) have been disqualified for three months for this behavior. but the chairman of the Intemational Jury decided to accept them at Ireland and postponed the decision of whether or not to extend the ban to World events or restrict it only to the Spanish championship. Only next week will we know the final verdict. Absent from Ireland and 'for the next round. planned for next weekend in Luxembourg. was Fumitaka Nozaki. The Japanese was injured while he was training in France. He is riding the French Championship this year. He should join the trials circus in Germany in May.