Wednesday April 29, 2026 at 7:07pm
Nieve Holmes continued her strong start to the 2026 season by taking victory at Round 1 of the Welsh Open Sprint Championship, the King of the Hill Sprint Enduro at Cwmythig Hill in Rhayader. Racing for ET James Sherco, the defending champion delivered a commanding performance to open her title defence in style.
Competing over seven tests across a varied and demanding lap featuring grass sections, a motocross track, and parts of a SuperEnduro-style course, Holmes quickly established herself at the front of the Women’s class. Winning five of the seven tests, she consistently set the benchmark throughout the day to secure the overall victory and maximum points from the opening round.
The event also provided valuable track time at Cwmythig Hill, which will host the Cross Test at the EnduroGP of Wales later this year as the 2026 season finale. With conditions and terrain offering a useful preview of what’s to come in August, the weekend served as both a competitive outing and important preparation for the world championship.
Nieve’s latest success builds on an already positive start to the year, following a podium and win at the opening rounds of the EnduroGB Championship and a top-six performance at round one of the FIM EnduroGP World Championship in Italy. Carrying strong momentum across all three championships, she now turns her attention to round two of the EnduroGP series this weekend in Oliana, Spain.
Nieve Holmes: “It was a really good day and I’m happy to start the championship with a win. The lap was great with a mix of everything, so it kept things interesting and made it important to stay consistent across all the tests. I felt comfortable on the bike and was able to push where it counted, which was nice. It’s always good to get some time at Cwmythig Hill as well with EnduroGP coming here later in the year. The season has started well across the board, and I’m feeling confident heading into Spain this weekend for round two of EnduroGP.”