News: Halesowen launch 2022 Academy

Halesowen Athletic and Cycling Club are proud to present their 2022 Academy line up with renewed sponsorship from Mapei UK, subsidiary of one of the most celebrated sponsors in cycling, Mapei

News: Halesowen launch 2022 Academy

Halesowen Athletic and Cycling Club are proud to present their 2022 Academy line up with renewed sponsorship from Mapei UK, subsidiary of one of the most celebrated sponsors in cycling, Mapei. The Italian company is world leader in production of adhesives, sealants and chemical products for the building industry.

Backed by Mapei UK since 2020, the academy has the youngest line-up in the eight seasons the squad has been running, with two first-year juniors, four second-year juniors, and two under-16 riders. Like the legendary professional teams sponsored by Mapei in the 1990s, the Halesowen kit features the distinctive multi-coloured “cubes” design.

The roster includes double national champion Tomos Pattinson, who took the British junior hill-climb title on the iconic Winnats Pass climb in October 2021, and added the Welsh cyclo-cross title in January 2022. Pattinson had a stellar 2021 as a second-year under-16, taking medals in UK national championships at circuit race, Madison and points race.

A new rider in the academy for 2022 is second-year under-16 Mari Porton, who is a member of the GB national apprentice team after a strong first year at under-16 in 2021. Juniors Joe Homer, Billy Laight and Aaron Mansell are also new to the academy, while junior Joe Brookes joined midway through 2021.

While Porton has raced strongly on the track in the Icebreaker series this spring taking second overall, Brookes, Homer and Will Simons dominated the junior category in the West Midlands cyclo-cross league over the winter, holding the first three places overall for most of the league, with Brookes taking the final overall victory.

Alongside main sponsor Mapei UK, the team enjoys long standing support from BikeStow, makers of bike storage systems, award-winning Ludlow deli BroadBean, custom kit makers ProVision – who have backed the academy since its foundation in 2015 – nutrition supplier Secret Training and spring water company Wenlock Spring. They are joined this year by Swinnertons Cycles, one of the longest-established bike shops in the UK, who supply technical back-up from their base in Stoke.

As well as a race programme which will take in the UK national junior and under-16 series, and the Junior Tour of Ireland, the academy will either run or support eight days of road racing in 2022, including the BikeStow 3-day in late June, the Nick Clayton Memorial race in late July, and its own road race on March 20.

“After two years of disrupted racing, we’re hoping for a ‘normal’ season this year,” said academy manager Peter Hall. “This is a strong and promising line-up, with riders of national quality, and we are proud that all these riders either have come through the club’s youth system or have some prior connection with us. Backing from our sponsors and the main Halesowen club, and committed volunteer work from parents means that we can give our young riders a proper race programme as well as playing a pivotal role in maintaining the West Midlands road race calendar.”

Halesowen A&CC Academy-Mapei UK

Joe Brookes
Ryan Brookes
Patrick Fotheringham
George Homer
Joe Homer
Billy Laight
Henry Lloyd-Langston
Luke Mannings
Aaron Mansell
Tomos Pattinson
Mari Porton
Will Simons