Wednesday 23rd March – Day 1
The 2011 World Championships kicked off in Apeldoorn in the Netherlands today with the Australians, as expected, dominating the Team Pursuit but not, surprisingly, the medals table which, by the end of the day, was topped by Belarus. For all the reports – and even more commas read on…
trackcycling’s coverage of the World Track Championships is supported by SL Carbons – The Fabric of Your Success
trackcycling’s coverage of the World Track Championships is supported by SL Carbons – The Fabric of Your Success
Men’s Team Pursuit Qualifying
The week’s competition at the 2011 UCI Track Cycling World Championships kicked off with qualifying for the Men’s team pursuit. Gemany set the early pace with a 4:06.977 but it was clear that there were a number of teams that could go faster. The first to do so was Russia – coached by Heiko Salzwedel who has already delivered World titles to the Danish and Great Britain teams. Alexey Markov, Evgeny Kovalev, Ivan Kovlev and Alexander Serov’s time of 4:00.965 topped the leaderboard until the final three heats. World Cup winners Spain couldn’t get close and clocked a 4:06.187, just missing out on a medal, but the New Zealand team of Sam Bewley, Peter Latham, Marc Ryan and Jesse Sergent went one better and booked a place in the bronze medal ride with a 4:04.164.
With Bradley Wiggins and Geraint Thomas concentrating on the road (Thomas just missing out on a win while the session was on),Great Britain hada mix of youth and experience. Ed Clancy, Stephen Burke, Peter Kennaugh and Andy Tennant took two seconds off the Kiwis, but 4:02.764 was nowhere near good enough to make the Gold medal ride.
For the first two and a half kilometres, it looked as though the Russians would finish at the top of the timing charts, but the phenomenal Australian quartet of Jack Bobridge, Rohan Dennis, Luke Durbridge and Michael Hepburn drew level and then pulled ahead – just failing to break the four minute barrier with a 4:00.168. With less than a second between them and the Russians, this evening’s final should be a thriller.
1 AUSTRALIA (Jack BOBRIDGE, Rohan DENNIS, Luke DURBRIDGE, Michael HEPBURN) 4:00.168
2 RUSSIA (Alexey MARKOV, Evgeny KOVALEV, Ivan KOVALEV, Alexander SEROV) 4:00.965
3 GREAT BRITAIN (Edward CLANCY, Steven BURKE, Peter KENNAUGH, Andrew TENNANT) 4:02.764
4 NEW ZEALAND (Sam BEWLEY, Peter LATHAM, Marc RYAN, Jesse SERGENT) 4:04.164
Men’s Team Sprint Qualifying
The Men’s Team Sprint went to form – after a halting start that saw two false starts in the heats between the USA and Spain, and Colombia and the Czech Republic. It can’t have done them much harm, though, as Jamie Staff’s USA trio recovered to top the leader board and it was the Czechs that knocked them off top spot.
The home crowd were delighted when the Netherlands set a time of 45.047 to take second place, but New Zealand, starting from the other side of the track in the same heat, did a 45.032 to sneak the lead. Russia knocked them off their perch with a 44.805 but again, it was Australia on the other side of the track that set the pace with a 44.501 – Jason Niblett, Daniel Ellis and Scott Sunderland booking a place in the finals.
The Great Britain trio of Jason Kenny, Chris Hoy and Matthew Crampton were a third of a second inside that time, but it was the German squad of Rene Enders, Maximilian Levy and Stefan Nimke with a 44.101 and the French team of Michael D’Almeida, Gregory Bauge and Kévin Sireau with a 43.951 that booked the two Gold medal final slots.
1 FRANCE (Michaël D’ALMEIDA, Gregory BAUGE, Kévin SIREAU) 43.951
2 GERMANY (Rene ENDERS, Maximilian LEVY, Stefan NIMKE) 44.101
3 GREAT BRITAIN (Matthew CRAMPTON, Chris HOY, Jason KENNY) 44.128
4 AUSTRALIA(Jason NIBLETT, Scott SUNDERLAND, Daniel ELLIS) 44.501
Women’s 500m Time Trial Final
With reigning champion Anna Meares absent and a relatively small field, there was potential for surprise in the 500m Time Trail and when local favourite Willy Kanis went to the top of the leaderboard just outside the track record with a 34.657, it looked like the title might be coming to the Netherlands.
That idea didn’t last very long. Miriam Welte broke the track record – the German clocking 34.496 – before Sandie Clair of France smashed it, taking off another half a second to record 33.919.
Last rider to go, Olga Panarina of Belarus, shaved a little more off – taking Gold with a 33.896.
GOLD Olga PANARINA BLR 33.896
SILVER Sandie CLAIR FRA 33.919
BRONZE Miriam WELTE GER 34.496
Men’s Team Pursuit Finals
Unlike the qualifying session in the afternon, where the Australian quarter took their time to get on top of the Russians’ mark, in the Final they led from the off and dominated the race.
The Russians were over a second off their earlier pace; the Australians, by contrast, were flying and shaved off three seconds to take the Gold by five and set a world class time of 3:57.832 seconds.
With nothing to lose, Great Britain swapped Ed Clancy for young Welshman Sam Harrison on the Bronze medal ride-off. The new squad clocked a time just 17 hundredths off the pace of qualifying. The Kiwis – two seconds down in the afternoon session dropped almost two seconds on that time to finish 4th.
GOLD AUSTRALIA (Jack BOBRIDGE, Rohan DENNIS, Luke DURBRIDGE, Michael HEPBURN) 3:57.832
SILVER RUSSIA (Alexey MARKOV, Evgeny KOVALEV, Ivan KOVALEV, Alexander SEROV) 4:02.229
BRONZE GREAT BRITAIN (Steven BURKE, Samuel HARRISON, Peter KENNAUGH, Andrew TENNANT) 4:02.781
4 NEW ZEALAND (Sam BEWLEY, Peter LATHAM, Marc RYAN, Jess SERGENT) 4:05.977
Women’s 25km Points Race Final
Cari Higgins of the USA took the first sprint in the Women’s Points race, with Tatsiana Sharakova of Belarus taking the second. It was Czech Jarmila Machacova who dominated the race, however, taking maximum points in the next four sprints and, with fellow escapees Minamii Uwano of Japan, Leire Olaberria of Spain and Pascale Schnider of Switzerland built up a healthy lead. Machacova and Uwano almost took the lap, but first Marianne Vos of the Netherlands and then Madeleine Sandig of Germany and Sharakova chased her down and brought the bunch back to her.
Then Sharakova slipped away and took the lap – leap-frogging Machacova in the overall points standing and clinching the Gold with her second sprint victory in the 7th of the 10 scoring laps. Machacova held on for Silver and the consistent Giorgia Bronzini – who scored in half of the sprints – took the Bronze for Italy.
Following Panarina’s win in the 500m Time Trial, Belarus go in to Day 2 of the competition on top of the Medals Table.
GOLD Tatsiana SHARAKOVA BLR 30P
SILVER Jarmila MACHACOVA CZE 20
BRONZE Giorgia BRONZINI ITA 14
Men’s 15km Scratch Final
The Men’s Scratch race was run at a frantic pace – averaging 32mph for the 60 lap event. Ten of the 21 starters failed to finish as the field split in to three groups and the fractured again – riders dropping off the back of a group of four or five were simply unable to stay with the race. Great Britain’s Sam Harrison – drafted in to the Team Pursuit Bronze medal ride less than an hour earlier – was one of those who failed to finish after a valiant effort.
Pre-race favourite Cameron Meyer – aiming for a three Gold haul along with the Points race and Madison – showed early on but couldn’t stay with the decisive break which saw Ho Ting Kwok of Hong Kong slip away to take the Gold from a fast charging Elia Viviani of Italy with 2009 World Champion Morgan Kneisky taking the Bronze.
GOLD Ho Ting KWOK HKG
SILVER Elia VIVIANI ITA
BRONZE Morgan KNEISKY FRA
Men’s Team Sprint Finals
The Germans led the Team Sprint Final for just over half a lap. By the time Rene Enders crossed the line at the end of his opening lap, the French had eased just 17 hundredths of a second ahead thanks to a 17.300 from Gregory Bauge. Sireau bested Levy by two tenths to set Michaël D’Almeida up for a head-to-head battle with Stefan Nimke. The Frenchman took another three tenths out of his German opposite number to seal the Gold in a time of 43.867 seconds.
In the Bronze medal ride-off, Great Britain comfortably beat Australia in a time a couple of tenths quicker than Germany’s Silver medal performance.
GOLD France (Michaël D’ALMEIDA, Gregory BAUGE, Kévin SIREAU) 43.867
SILVER GERMANY (Rene ENDERS, Maximilian LEVY, Stefan NIMKE) 44.483
BRONZE GREAT BRITAIN (Matthew CRAMPTON, Chris HOY, Jason KENNY) 44.235
4 AUSTRALIA (Daniel ELLIS, Matthew GLAETZER, Jason NIBLETT) 45.241
trackcycling’s coverage of the World Track Championships is supported by SL Carbons – The Fabric of Your Success
