UCI 2006 World Track Championships
Team Pursuit
April 15, 2006; Bordeaux (France)
British Cycling's Larry Hickmott reports
2006 World Track Championships
Above: Australia even surprised themselves by winning the Gold medal today in the Team Pursuit.
Silver for Great Britain in Team Pursuit: Having won the World Title in Los Angeles 2005 and then the Commonwealth Games title last month, the Brits have got used to winning and that habit continued when during qualifying this morning, they were fastest and booked themselves a ride in the final for Gold. With a rider barely out of the Junior ranks, Welsh cyclist Geraint Thomas, riding in the foursome after only a week or so of training with them after the Games, the team learned a lot from the first round and they went into the final this evening knowing they could win.
It was never going to be easy though and they knew the Aussies would be tougher than they were in Melbourne and so it proved. Through out the ride, the teams were evenly matched and after going down early on, the Brits fought back to take the lead several times before it was an all out three-man sprint for the line. It was so tight, there was only one gun shot at the end and we had to wait ages for the verdict which sadly went to the Australians with a time of 4.01.491 to Great Britain's 4.01.527.
It was heart break time and none more than Geraint Thomas who like each and every member of the team wanted, needed even, the Gold medal. The normally placid Paul Manning was quite upset and agitated and it is the most disappointed I have ever seen this team. That said, the coach, Simon Jones, talking to the riders in the pits afterwards felt more pleased with their ride than he did the one in Melbourne and it's a reminder that these performances are more about the long term goals than the here and now no matter how great a World title is.
Pass the chalk ... The GB riders prepare to ride off the for the Gold medal.
Geraint Thomas (2nd from right) joins the Team Pursuit squad as they wait for the nod to get on the track to ride for Gold.
Two of the riders afterwards felt able to speak about the ride, the first being Geraint Thomas who had a lot of responsibility placed on his young shoulders being asked to ride with a team that has been together for a decade or more in one form or another. Like Steve Cummings who came into the squad whilst still an under 23 rider, Geraint stepped into the fire and came out of it intact. The first to him after they came off the track was Steve Cummings who more than most knew what Geraint must have been feeling like.
"It was a massive step up for me personally going from a '9' in Sydney to a '1' here" Geraint explained. "Riding with those guys, you learn every lap and it was really good to be given the chance to ride with them. Obviously it's really disappointing not to win, and you always feel you could have done more. I feel I have let them down a bit."
Asked how the difference in pace felt, he explained "everything about it was different. The line on the track, the smoothness and everything is constant. It feels like you're doing a 100k an hour - it's just so rapid. I had really good form coming into this and was holding my own in training."
I then spoke to Rob Hayles who explained there was a few flicks and some shunting going on but that overall it felt okay out on the track. "I felt we all did our job out there." Asked was there some post Commonwealth Games tiredness, he replied "Yeah. You can see between those of us in all the nations that have done the Games; some people are way better than they were at the Games and some are people are a lot worse."
On Geraint Thomas, he had this to say "He shouldn't be disappointed but I am sure he is because he is a winner and he desperately wanted to get back in a rainbow jersey, a mans one this time! Needing to win is what it's all about now. Second and third is great but.
In a few years I'll look back at my career and think bloody hell look at all these medals but right now I just want to win".
The final word was on the speed of the ride. "I think that is as quick as I have gone before. When we first looked at the track, it is a very different track technically and it showed, because the Aussies are very technically good and so are we and we were the two teams far and away ahead of everyone else."
Great Britain in the final.
QUALIFIERS
1. Great Britain 4.04.074 (58.998 km/h)
2. Australia 4.04.403
3. Netherlands 4.06.494
4. Ukraine 4.07.165
5. New Zealand 4.07.530
6. Germany 4.07.873
7. Spain 4.08.542
8. Russia 4.09.954
9. France 4.10.162
10. Denmark 4.10.174
11. Belgium 4.11.989
12. USA 4.14.952
13. Italy 4.17.276
14. Poland 4.20.892
GOLD/SILVER
1. Australia 4.01.491 (59.629 km/h)
Peter Dawson, Matthew Goss, Mark Jamieson, Stephen Wooldridge
2. Great Britain 4.01.527
Stephen Cummings, Rob Hayles, Paul Manning, Geraint Thomas
BRONZE
3. Ukraine 4.04.695 (58.848 km/h)
4. Netherland 4.05.305
Australia set off in the final in front of a massive crowd.
The podium, Silver for GB, Gold for Australia and Bronze of the Ukraine.
Great Britain: Geraint Thomas, Paul Manning, Steve Cummings and Rob Hayles.
The Aussies riding to victory -- just!
The Dutch were stopped by the Ukraine from getting on the podium again.
Geraint Thomas leads Steve Cummings, Paul Manning and Rob Hayles.
New Zealand.
Bronze medallists, Ukraine.
French had plenty of support and when they were on the track, the noise was incrediable... the boos and so on for other teams hasn't endeared them to other teams though ...
Belgium
Italians
USA kicked off the qualifying session.
