England's Evie Richards has claimed gold in the women's mountain biking at the Commonwealth Games.
Earlier in the day, New Zealand's Sam Gaze controled the entire race on his way to victory in the men's event, and Richards followed suit in claiming the women's edition.
Nevertheless, despite spending much of the contest out in front, the 2021 world champion had to overcome a slide close to the finish line with two laps remaining.
While that error only helped the Malvern competitor refocus, it also gave hope to the chasing pack as Australia's Zoe Cuthbert and South Africa's Candice Lill closed the gap to 26 seconds.
Although Richards was taking the cautious approach around the trickier parts of the course at Cannock Chase, she remained strong down the longer, flatter stretches, effectively leaving Cuthbert and Lill out of contention.
Richards was able to celebrate down the final straight, the 25-year-old eventually finishing 47 seconds ahead of Cuthbert.
Lill comfortably held on for third spot, earning the best result of her career in the process, with Scotland's Isla Short finishing 55 seconds adrift of the medal positions.
