The concluding day of competiton in this year’s Worlds was split between the Men’s Sprint and Women’s Omnium competitions – with the Women’s Keirin and the Madison making up the rest of the programme. With Francois Pervis of France, Sam Webster of New Zealand, Denis Dmitriev of Russia and Stefan Boetticher of Germany in the Men’s Sprint Finals, some good hard racing was guaranteed.
Overnight leader in the Women’s Omnium competition Sarah Hammer of the USA looked to have a comfortable lead over Poland’s Katarzyna Pawlowska and Great Britain’s Laura Trott, but Day 2 can see a shake up of the order. Could she hold on? And could Rebecca James of Great Britain keep her run going and get a medal in all four of the competitions she’s entered?
trackcycling’s coverage of the 2013 World Track Championships is supported by V-Sprint
trackcycling’s coverage of the 2013 World Track Championships is supported by V-Sprint
Women’s Omnium IV – Individual Pursuit
For most of the Women’s Omnium Pursuit session it looked as though there might be a surprise on the cards – Canada’s Gillian Carleton clocked 3:33.486 early on and nobody else got close to it until the final two heats.
In the penultimate heat, Laura Trott of Great Britain came within just over a second but it was overnight leader Sarah Hammer who finally bettered the time in the very last heat, shaving another two seconds off and giving herself an almost unasailable lead. Trott’s third place put her in with a shot at Silver but Gold, realistically, was slipping away.
1 Sarah HAMMER USA 3:31.550
2 Gillian CARLETON CAN 3:33.486
3 Laura TROTT GBR 3:34.716
4 Annette EDMONDSON AUS 3:40.260
5 Katarzyna PAWLOWSKA POL 3:41.261
6 Leire OLABERRIA DORRONSORO ESP 3:41.830
Women’s Omnium V – Scratch Race
Els Belmans of Belgium slipped away from the rest of the field in the closing stages of the Scratch Race and, with her representing no threat to the overall Omnium competition, the bunch didn’t respond, allowing her to take the lap. The focus was on the final gallop to the line with Trott and Hammer watching each other like hawks. It was Trott that won out, taking third place behind Belmans and Laurie Berthon of France but Hammer was fourth.
The Gold wasn’t assured, but Trott would have to be six places clear of Hammer in the closing 500m Time Trial – and, realistically, they were unlikely to be more than a few places apart. Katarzyna slipped out of the Silver medal spot and she had Annette Edmondson of Australia not too far behind.
1 Els BELMANS BEL
2 Laurie BERTHON FRA -1 lap
3 Laura TROTT GBR -1
4 Sarah HAMMER USA -1
5 Annette EDMONDSON AUS -1
6 Gillian CARLETON CAN -1
Women’s Omnium VI – 500m Time Trial
It didn’t really matter who won the 500m Time Trial. All that mattered was how many places separated Trott and Hammer. In the event, Carelton – who had a very strong second day – took it with a 35.510, ahead of Endmondson who clocked 35.533 with Tamara Balabolina of Russia on 35.628. Trott was fourth on 35.675 but Hammer was just three tenths of a second – and two places – behind.
That ensured that Hammer took the Gold and Trott the Silver – and Edmondson’s second place lifted her in to the Bronze Medal position.
1 Gillian CARLETON CAN 35.510
2 Annette EDMONDSON AUS 35.533
3 Tamara BALABOLINA RUS 35.628
4 Laura TROTT GBR 35.675
5 Leire OLABERRIA DORRONSORO ESP 35.866
6 Sarah HAMMER USA 36.053
Women’s Omnium Overall
After disappointment in last year’s Worlds and Olympics, Sarah Hammer was back where she wanted to be – on top of the podium. It wasn’t a dominant performance – her battles with Laura Trott have always been decided by a handful of points, but this time the four point margin was in her favour. Katarzyna Pawlowska – who was in the medal positions for most of the event – will have to console herself with having retained her Scratch Race World Championship as a late surge from Trott and Annette Edmondson snatched away first the Silver and then the Bronze.
GOLD Sarah HAMMER USA 20
SILVER Laura TROTT GBR 24
BRONZE Annette EDMONDSON AUS 26
4 Katarzyna PAWLOWSKA POL 32
5 Gillian CARLETON CAN 39
6 Leire OLABERRIA DORRONSORO ESP 41
Men’s Sprint
The large Russian contingent in the (not very large) crowd nearly took the roof off when Denis Dmitirev won the first race of his Semi Final match against Francois Pervis. They were less vocal when
the big French rider evened things up, but it was Dmitriev that took the decider and they were back on their feet. The other Semi went to three, too, with Kiwi Sam Webster surprising Stefan Boetticher and going one up in the opening ride, but the power of the big German brought him level and ensured he took the decider.
The Finals looked evenly matched with the form the riders had shown over the course of the competition, but in the end both were pretty one sided with Pervis out gassing Webster in two races to clinch the Bronze and Boetticher – who looked strong but tactically vulnerable throughout the competition doing pretty much the same thing to Dmitriev.
GOLD Stefan BOTTICHER GER **
SILVER Denis DMITRIEV RUS
BRONZE Francois PERVIS FRA **
Sam WEBSTER NZL
Men’s Madison
At it’s best, the Madison is thrilling, edge of the seat stuff with laps lost and going and points tallies ebbing and flowing. This wasn’t one of those Madisons, although it started promisingly enough. The Ukraine (Roman Lutsyshyn and Mykhaylo Radionov) and Kazakhstan (Artyom Zakharov and Dias Omirzakov) went off in pursuit of the lap gain and took first and second in the first two sprints – that’s 40 laps worth in a Madison. But the challenge faded and the race settled down again. Italy, France and the Czech Republic picked up a sprint win each but there was little drama – despite the speed – until Vivien Brisse and Morgan Kneisky of France, David Muntaner and Albert Torres of Spain and Henning Bommel and Theo Reinhardt of Germany went off together to take a lap – so gradually that they hoovered up the top three places of two sprints on the way.
And that, pretty much, was that. Kneisky and Brisse couldn’t be caught no matter what happened in the Final sprint but Bommel and Reinhardt’s second spot was vulnerable. They were just two points clear of Muntaner and Torres which meant that if the Spanish pair could take the Final sprint, they’d move in to the Silver medal position no matter what the Germans did. The Germans came 4th in the final gallop and picked up another point but the Spanish did what they needed to do and took the 5 points and the Silver Medal.
GOLD France (Vivien BRISSE, Morgan KNEISKY) 18
SILVER Spain (David MUNTANER JUANEDA, Albert TORRES BARCELO) 15
BRONZE Germany (Henning BOMMEL, Theo REINHARDT) 13
Women’s Keirin
With a Sprint World Championship Jersey already in her suitcase – along with a pair of Bronze medals from the Team Sprint and the 500m Time Trial – Rebecca James of Great Britain was having a pretty good week before the Keirin competition started. But she just seemed to get stronger and more confident as the week progressed and she looked dominant across the three rides behind the derny.
A crash in her first round race brought down Germany’s Miriam Welte and Australia’s Stephanie Morton, but by that point James was long gone. Pre-tournament favourite Shuang Guo was ajudged to have caused the crash, but she was trailing in James’ wake, too.
Lisandra Guerra of Cuba took the intiative in the Final, but James was in a different class, picking her way through to the front of the race and riding away from the rest of the field. If Becky James was a country, her two Golds and Two Bronzes would have put her equal fourth with France in the Medals table.
The Women’s Keirin being the the last race of the week, her Gold did confirm Great Britain at the top of the actual medals table with a total haul of nine – five Golds, two Silvers and Two Bronzes. Germany were next up with eight – three Gold, two Silver and three Bronze – and, after a promising start, Australia third – also with eight medals, but only two Golds, two Silvers and four Bronzes. The road to Rio starts here.
GOLD JAMES Rebecca Angharad GBR
SILVER GONG Jinjie CHN
BRONZE GUERRA RODRIGUEZ Lisandra CUB
trackcycling’s coverage of the 2013 World Track Championships is supported by V-Sprint
