Andy Nichols and Kate Mactear were the fastest man and woman respectively at the British Universities and Colleges Sport Hill-Climb Championships near Sheffield on Saturday.

As well as taking the solo victory Nichols, the 28-year-old from Chelmsford, led Sheffield University to the team prize with last year’s winner Kieran Savage placing second this time. William Powell completed the winning trio with fourth overall, while Chester’s Kieran Wynne-Cattanach rounded off the podium with third.

Meanwhile, 24-year-old Mactear also led Bristol University to the team prize in the women’s championship, with Hester Stembridge completing the winning duo in the women’s two-rider team competition.

Nichols – who went on to ride the National Hill-Climb Championships the day after winning the BUCS crown, placed eighth in the 2015 event. For Savage, his second place matches his result in 2015, while he won last year’s title race in Scotland.

Nichols has been in great form this season – although until his win in this event he had not tasted victory in a hill climb.

He placed second in the Matlock CC climb of Riber the week before, and was also runner-up in the Bolsover and District CC hill-climb at Palterton, the Tickhill Velo climb at Brookhouse, the Rutland CC at Mam Nick, the Stocksbridge CC climb at Ewden and the Sheffrec CC climb of Woodfall Lane at High Bradfield.

Mactear, an engineering graduate who is currently studying a masters at the

University of Bristol, is the reigning Under-25 European Triathlon Champion following victory in Austria in June, and last month placed third at the Under-25 World Triathlon Championships in Rotterdam.

While her time trialling appearances are few and far between, she has some notable performances to her name including being fastest female at the University of Bristol CC’s hill-climb on Belmont Hill as well as the 73 Degrees Bicycle 30-mile time trial back in June.

* All reports are copyright of Cycling Time Trials/Snowdon Sports. Not to be used without permission.

* A gallery of images from the BUCS Championship by Kimroy Photography is available here

* Podium photos courtesy of @BUCSsport

Results:

Men:

1. Andy Nichols (Sheffield)   2:21.314

2. Kieran Savage (Sheffield)  2:21.436

3. Kieran Wynne-Cattanach (Chester)            2:23.393

4. William Powell (Sheffield) 2:30.002

5. Rob Rogers (Loughborough)          2:32.733

6. James Hill (Nottingham Trent)       2:35.756

7. Fred Cook (Bristol) 2:36.232

8. Felix Barker (Cambridge)   2:37.064

9. Archie Cross (Sheffield)     2:37.506

10. Dan Collier (Sheffield)     2:38.127

Team: Sheffield (Nichols, Savage, Powell) 7:12.752

Women:

1. Kate Mactear (Bristol)        3:13.385

2. Freya Rawlins (Kent)          3:21.682

3. Fran Bromley (Bath)           3:36.295

4. Alexandra Kendall-Smith (Manchester)     3:42.888

5. Emma Wood (Edinburgh)  3:43.775

6. Hester Stembridge (Bristol)            3:48.154

7. Holly MacMahon (Sheffield)         3:53.319

8. Harriet Dodd (Brighton)     3:54.107

9. Jenny Johnson (Leeds)        3:54.116

10. Lara Spearman (Durham)  4:00.514

Team: Bristol (Mactear, Stembridge)  7:01.539