[overall] through most of them so
I was kind of giving them tips on
what I was doing, and then I was
also asking them about sections
I struggled with, like what were
they doing. Just talking with your
team and figuring out the best
way so that we can all go fast
and also be consistent together
is the name of the game."
Despite his own ups and
downs, Cleveland finished behind
only Elgari in the JWT individual
final standings, with Jones fourth
and Tino 18th. The team spent
most of the week comfortably
in second, ultimately besting
third-place Spain by nearly three
minutes. Embracing the subtle-
ties of teamwork and honing their
speed signals good potential for
their futures, whether in JWT or
possibly WT someday.
somewhat because while show-
ing glimpses of speed, they also
lacked a bit of consistency com-
pared to the competition. Cleve-
land demonstrated the most
speed and consistency of the
Americans under 24 years old. He
said, "I honestly had no expecta-
tions [coming into the week]; I
just came in and wanted to do
the best I could for my team.
"I didn't get to see Tino and
Cooper as much today, but [on
the first day], we would come off
a test and we would talk about it.
Obviously, I was the faster rider
top 10 with Clement Clauzier,
Romain Dagna and Thibault
Giraudon—fourth, fifth and sixth
overall individual JWT riders
after day one, respectively.
France did sneak past Italy on
days two and three, with Cris-
tino suffering after incurring a
shoulder injury that limited him
to relying mostly on one hand
to do tire changes and other
mechanical chores at the end of
each day, much less go fast on
his dirt bike.
But after Giraudon dropped
out with a technical issue on day
four, Italy popped back to the
top despite Verzeroli also being
hampered by an apparent injury.
The U.S. JWT team suddenly
found itself in second, comfort-
ably ahead of Spain with two
days left. That surprised them
OCTOBER 12-17, 2026
GRANDOLA, PORTUGAL
OFF-ROAD I 100TH 6DAYS FIM ENDURO OF NATIONS
P68
From left: U.S. Women's World
Trophy team captain Brandy
Richards, Rachel Gutish, Korie
Steede and U.S. Trophy Team
Manager Antti Kallonen celebrate
on the top step of the podium.
