Gilmore pulls out of grand prix

Reigning women's champion Rochelle Gilmore has been forced to withdraw from the NSW International Grand Prix Cycling Series in Wollongong and Cronulla this weekend.Gilmore had surgery last week on a leg muscle above her right knee but it had not recovered enough for her to race in the elite competition.The champion cyclist, who grew up in Stanwell Tops and now lives at Cronulla, was looking forward to defending her title in front of her home crowd."It was very hard for me today to go to the launch. I guess there's a part in me that says I'd really like to race anyway," Gilmore said yesterday."I've been back on the bike for two days on just 30-minute rolls, light spins. But there is a part of me that really wants to do it, to have the opportunity to race in your backyard."It's a really, really big deal for [defending men's champion] Chris Sutton and myself being locals."Having won last year as well I really would [have] liked to race again."Obviously my main goals are at the end of July and August at the Olympics so I've got to keep thinking about that."Gilmore will instead be a co-commentator for Channel Nine and WIN Television's race coverage this weekend.Gilmore, Sutton and Graeme Brown, the inaugural winner of the Cronulla International Grand Prix in 2006, were among the cyclists at the competition launch at Elouera yesterday.Brown has set his sights on returning to the winner's list.The Australian dual Olympic Games gold medallist at Athens has achieved enormous success.Ben Kersten, the former Wollongong flyer, was also expected to make an impact and has a strong team, including world junior champion Scott Law, of Balgownie.Former world champion and World Cup winner Kate Bates was a late starter to the series as well as triple world champion Michael Rogers, who was set to contest Wollongong on Saturday.Rogers' brothers, Peter and Deane, who are both national representatives, will race on the same program for the first time in more than a decade.Race organiser Phill Bates was expecting dynamic racing over the two days.Bates said the Flagstaff Hill circuit will be shorter than the course was when he brought the Commonwealth Bank Cycle Classic to Wollongong in the 1980s and '90s."It's spectacular. It's 660 metres. It's egg shaped. There's a hill in it," Bates said."In the men's race with the hammer down the front and back of the pack will be half the course."It will be great for the viewers and the spectators aren't going to miss out on one bit of the action."Wollongong is going to benefit a lot from the national and also the international exposure."Bates expected the racing to be intense on both days."People can't afford to relax," he said."They're going to have to race well in both."Last year Chris [Sutton] won in Cronulla. He had to win the race to win the series and Rochelle [Gilmore] had to do likewise."It's a shorter series this year. But it's quite dynamic. We're looking forward to doing this as a Saturday/Sunday forever in Wollongong and Cronulla."I think it's got a lot of good things happening."