Promising youngster Mark Thwaites scored his first Premier Calendar points after turning in a superb performance at the National Road Race Championships in South Wales.

Thwaites, from Burley in Wharfedale, finished 18th in the 106-mile event based around Abergavenny, securing six points towards the season-long series.

While more than 100 of the best British riders started the event, only 19 finished after a large split forced organisers to pull many riders out.

Thwaites 19, managed to stay with the leading riders and was the only member of his team to finish the event.

He said: "I was really pleased with my performance. I've ridden all of the Premier events so far this season but I'm usually riding for our team leader Pete Williams, helping him to get to the front."

The decisive split in the race came around half distance with Tour de France rider David Millar going on to win the race - but only after several smaller breaks had been pulled back in the opening few miles.

Thwaites added: "I was the only guy to finish from our team. Some of the other guys tried to do something early on and were suffering because of it.

"When the attack went at about half distance I was reasonably fresh and went with it."

Thwaites - who has had a mixed year so far, having broken his collar bone after leading the Tour of the North earlier in the season - will ride the final event of the Premier Calendar series on Sunday, the Tour of Pendle at Barnoldswick.

He then heads to Switzerland for a 121-kilometre mountain bike race over the Alps.