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FIM Individual World Trials Championship Round 7: Italian GP L~mpkin STORY AND PHOTOS BY MARIO CANDELLONE SESTRIERE, ITAlY, J(]LY 12-13 estriere, in the northwest of Italy, where in 2006 most of the Olympic winter games will be placed, welcomed the the latest round of what has become a most uncertain World Trials Championship. Thanks to the high altitude, the ski-resort attracted more than 20,000 people in the two-day event, and not just trials fans, but also citizens escaping from the hot cities in search of some fresh air. They were amazed by the high skill level that the World riders possessed as they attacked some truly spectacular sections. Nothing changed in the title struggle, because the same two contenders, Dougie Lampkin and Takahisa Fujinami, won one day each, though Lampkin may have been more convincing. He showed the same strength of his better moments in the past, winning without any shadow of doubt on Saturday, S 50 JULY 30, 2003' eye I e and Fujinami battle in the mountains and yielded to his rival, Takahisa Fujinami, on Sunday after a crash that forced him to ride with pain in his thigh and his hip. On the other side. we saw the real power of the Japanese after he was knocked out on Saturday. He promptly reacted positively on Sunday, forgetting the lesson imposed the day before. The gap of eight points in the standing remains intact, and the title has yet to be clinched with two events remaining. Marc Freixa and Albert Cabestany put in good performances, finishing third and fourth respectively, with Cabestany seeming to have again found the will to fight. Shadowing them were Graham Jarvis - not in his element in the dry terrain - and Adam Raga, who was quite disappointed with the observers, who were very strict in applying the rules. DAY DNE "Monster" Lampkin came out again, and his win was more than convincingl Not so lucky was "Fujigas," even n e vv s BRIEFLY. •• Sestriere also hosted the World round in 1986, the era of Eddy Lejeune and his four-stroke Honda. The club organized everything perfectly. There were two big groups of sections and 22 buses that continued to bring people to the two groups. There was also a maxi-screen in front of the start, playing videos of previous rounds on Saturday and Saturday's round by Sunday. The ticket price for the spectators was 10 euros ($11.25) for two days. Sestriere is situated at more than 6600 feet of altitude. and this created some carburetion problems on the bikes. The 'first group of sections (from 1 to 5) featured natural rocks surrounded by mountain flowers. On the contrary. from 6 to 14 the public was amazed by high stones, waterfalls. rocks faced at negative angles. jumps from one rock to another. etc. The last section was indoor style. inside a Palasport arena. Italian rider Daniele Maurino. who lives nearby, was unlucky on Saturday because when he was in 12th position, almost at the end of the first loop. he fell down the big log of the indoor section. hitting his back very hard. He was forced to abandon the day, but he fought through the pain and took part in Sunday's event. His determination paid off, as he earned his first world points. arriving in 15th place. The Junior riders missed 3 sections: from 6 through 8, which were considered too difficult to find easy lanes for them. British rider Shaun Morris won on Sunday and was runner-up on Saturday, so he stretched his lead over his rival. Polish Tadeusz Blazusiak. who was only third in both days. Frenchman Jerome Bethune won on Saturday and finished second on Sunday. In 2004 the World round returns to America. June 12-13, the World Championship series will visit Duluth, Minnesota. the second time that the city has hosted the series. The provisional calendar. not yet confirmed by the Federation. aiso inciudes another Japan round and eight GPs in Europe.