PICKERINGTON, Ohio — For the third time in the 89-year history of the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme International Six Days Enduro, the U.S. Junior Team has emerged victorious, claiming the world championship for the junior division. The 2014 ISDE was Nov. 3-8 in San Juan, Argentina. The U.S. Junior team included Justin Jones, Grant Baylor, Steward Baylor and Trevor Bollinger.

In the premier division, the U.S. Trophy Team of Mike Brown, Thad Duvall, Charlie Mullins, Zach Osborne, Taylor Robert and Kailub Russell finished second: 9 minutes, 46 seconds behind defending world champion France. The United States has never won the Trophy division, finishing second in 1982 and 2013.

The U.S. Women’s World Trophy Team of Amanda Mastin, Rachel Gutish and Sarah Baldwin finished the event in third.

Almost 350 riders from 23 nations competed in the 2014 ISDE.

“At one of the most-demanding Six Days in recent memory, it was an accomplishment to finish, let alone claim a podium slot,” said AMA President and CEO Rob Dingman. “We are exceptionally proud of the U.S. Junior Team for this triumph, and we congratulate them on their stellar performance on the world stage. In addition, we also extend our appreciation and congratulations to all U.S. riders who traveled to Argentina to represent the United States.”

The U.S. team also won the junior division in 1991 and 2006. This year, the U.S. Junior Team finished 1 minute, 42 seconds ahead of France in the division. Australia finished third, 5 minutes, 38 seconds behind France. Jones, who was the fastest U.S. Junior Team rider and seventh in the E2 class and 12th overall, said winning the world title was the “best moment” of his career.

“It was an honor to represent my country and make it to the top of the podium here at Six Days as well as being top Junior American,” Jones said. “I’m almost speechless. The feeling is amazing.”

Many team scores at the 2014 Six Days were decimated by bike failures due to the extremely dusty conditions on Day 3. The Women’s Trophy Team and each U.S. club team had at least one rider retire because of the dusty conditions.

Injuries and other equipment failures removed other riders from competition, most notably U.S. Trophy Team rider Zach Osborne.

In addition to Osborne’s motorcycle failure on Day 1, leaving the team with the minimum five riders and no throwaway scores for the rest of the week, Mullins suffered multiple crash-related injuries on Day 2, requiring a trip to the hospital for observation. On the notorious Day 3, Taylor Robert’s bike nearly failed when it had dust-induced starting problems, causing Robert to incur a nine-minute penalty.

“Even though our Trophy Team didn’t finish on top of the podium, we overcame three big setbacks and still managed to finish second,” said U.S. ISDE Team manager Antti Kallonen. “That should prove to the world that the United States is serious about Six Days.”