PHOTOS FROM DAY 2 BY LARRY HICKMOTT
Copenhagen UCI Track Cycling World Cup
February 13-15, 2009
By Larry Hickmott
Day 2
Men's Team Pursuit, Men's Keirin, Women's Team Sprint, Men's Scratch, Women's Points race, Women's 500m TT, Men's Kilometre, Darren Kenny Hour Record Attempt
Introduction
It was a real roller coaster of a day at the Ballerup Super Arena in Copenhagen with more medals for the Brits but also the sight of an Olympic champion falling for the second day in a row. There was a fantastic gold medal for the Team Pursuit team when Chris Newton, Steven Burke, Ed Clancy and Peter Kennaugh drilled it for 16 laps of the track to catch Spain and win the Gold.
Just as pleasing to watch was the Silver medal for Katie Colclough where the young Academy rider took on the very experienced best from around the World and with the help of her equally young teammates, held her own to win a well deserved Silver medal.
The low point undoubtedly was the crash in the final of the men’s Keirin which took out Chris Hoy and Ross Edgar. With a lap and a half to go, racing close as they do in this event, Chris Hoy got tangled up with a rider coming down his outside and it caused the Scotsman to come down in the heaviest crash imaginable. Both Chris and Ross (and the other rider involved) thankfully got up but Chris had to be taken to hospital to have some x-rays which showed no fractures.
Day 2 in Copenhagen
Men’s Team Pursuit
There were two British teams in this event, the Olympic Academy riders racing for 100% ME with Luke Rowe, Mark Christian, Andrew Fenn and Erick Rowsell and the Great Britain team with Olympic champion Ed Clancy teamed up with Steven Burke (Olympic bronze medallist), Peter Kennaugh and Rob Hayles for the qualifying ride.
On a track deemed to be slow, except for Taylor Phinney perhaps, the 100% ME riders produced a time of 4.14 which was slower than expected but it was surprising how long it took for another team to go faster. Teams did though and the young lads ended up finishing in 8th place.
Great Britain however had a lot riding on their shoulders being Olympic champions but only one of that team was racing, Ed Clancy. Their coach Matt Parker had set them a fast schedule for the track, and they held it give or take a tenth to qualify fastest by a long way.
In the final against Spain, Chris Newton came in for Rob Hayles who has the Madison on Sunday and the schedule was even faster and so it proved as the GB foursome rattled the Danish boards yet again although not without a little blip as for the first time in a while, gaps appeared in the line in the closing stages. Steven Burke was putting in yet another blistering effort but it was a little too hot and Chris Newton had to keep the team ship steady and let it come together which it did very quickly and they carried on to record a 4.01 according to the score board.
The riders in the final get off the line in the ride for Gold.
Rider reactions:
Peter Kennaugh: “that is the fastest I have gone but it felt a lot easier than the qualifier this morning. We used the same gear but I felt on top of it so much more. I’m enjoying the team pursuiting. It feels quite straight forward to me and when we get to the second or third k when it really starts to hurt, that is when I enjoy it. Silver in Cali, Silver in Beijing and now Gold here – its good!”
Chris Newton: “The legs felt fine out there. Burkey is going really well and he put in a quick turn and I know he rode away from me, but I didn’t panic. I know it probably looked a bit ragged, but it was controlled. It is probably just down to the change between the Points and Team Pursuit, and something to work on and it was a good little benchmark and practice run before the Worlds.”
Ed Clancy: “it is not the fastest track to team pursuit on and there was only me from the team in Beijing so we can’t be disappointed with how we rode today. We treated this competition as a training camp and trained through it and only had a little taper.
Qualification
1 Great Britain 4.04.080 (58.997 km/h)
Steven Burke, Ed Clancy, Rob Hayles, Peter Kennaugh
2. Spain 4.08.465
3. Denmark 4.08.924
4. Lokomotiv 4.10.708
8. 100% ME
Ride Of for Gold
1 Great Britain
Steven Burke, Chris Newton, Peter Kennaugh, Ed Clancy (GBr)
2. Spain (caught)
Bronze
3. Denmark 4.05.501
4. Lokomotiv 4.09.270
Men’s Keirin
Two to go and all is well as Bauge leads -- a lap later and three riders were down, Chris Hoy and Ross Edgar.
In this event were World and Olympic Champion Chris Hoy (Sky +HD) and Olympic Silver medallist Ross Edgar (GB). In the first heat, Chris Hoy went through, winning as he liked although the other riders didn’t give him an easy ride by any means but the master was looking very good indeed.
In the next heat, Ross Edgar, survived a rubbing of shoulders with another rider who crash down beside him, whilst Edgar carried on but finishing 3rd and having to ride the repecharge. Up against three other riders, Ross made no mistake in the rep, holding off the challenge of Travis Smith of Canada.
The second round went very smoothly and Chris and Ross controlled the race as they have many times before with Chris crossing the line first ahead of Ross and both were in the final for Gold. This was going to plan until the final few laps and after getting swamped by Gregory Bauge who jumped to the front as the derny came off, there was a coming together between Sireau on the outside, and Chris Hoy.
The triple Olympic champion went down at maximum speed and hit the boards hard and there was no where for Ross Edgar to go and he too came crashing down. Ross was the first up and he rolled around on his road bike to cheers from the crowd. Chris however stayed on the ground for a while with the team doctor looking after him.
After a long wait, a period filled with anxiety and thoughts for Hoy, the big man got up on his feet with cheers from the crowd and was helped to the team pit. He was then taken to hospital and as far as I know, returned to the team hotel that evening. The crash was so heavy, the normally indestructible GB bikes saw Chris Hoy’s bike break in several places so who knows how his body dealt with such a heavy blow.
Easy does it... Chris Hoy is first in the second round heat with Ross Edgar second.
It survived sure but as the GB team doctor explained, “Chris certainly took a mighty blow. Chris has lots of bruising and abrasions and the team will be re-assessing him tomorrow. We are worried about his right hip given the velocity he hit the floor at but the x-rays showed no fractures of right hip and he is now able to walk and hold his weight more easily.”
The man himself was philosophical about it saying “these things happen and it was a racing incident. It is a miracle I have had around thirty races without a crash since I started riding the Kierin in 2006.”
Chris went on to add that having won every race but one in the Keirin where his style is to get to the front and use his ability to accelerate quickly to control his rivals, this time he was trying something different. Watching his race, it was if on this track with long straights, he perhaps wanted to let Bauge take it on from the front but the coming together with Sireau saw the four time Olympic champion take the heaviest of tumbles. In that, his left foot came out of the pedal but his right one did not which didn’t help him as he hit the floor.
Our best wishes to Chris who isn’t sure what his next event will be now and says he will see how it goes when he gets home and how his injuries are heeling.
Ross Edgar meanwhile was soon back on the rollers and turning his legs over. Like a lot of accidents, what happened wasn’t clear but he said from what he could remember, “Bauge got over me, and then Chris got past me as well. Then, coming into the back straight, Sireau started making his move and they got tangled up and when Chris went down, I had nowhere to go and rode into his bike I think. It’s hard to tell. I should be okay. I am a bit bruised but I know I came off a lot better than Chris did. He took the brunt of it and I hope he’s okay.”
Ross Edgar avoids a fall in round 1.
First round
Heat 2
1. Chris Hoy (GBr) Team Sky +HD
2. Kévin Sireau (Fra) Cofidis
3. Rene Enders (Ger) Germany
4. Travis Smith (Can) Canada
5. Sergey Borisov (Rus) Russia
6. Victor Hermida (Ecu) Ecuador
Heat 3
1. Charlie Conord (Fra) France
2. Takashi Sakamoto (Jpn) Japan
3. Ross Edgar (GBr) Great Britain
4. Alejandro Mainat (Cub) Cuba
First round repechage
Heat 3
1. Ross Edgar (GBr) Great Britain
2. Travis Smith (Can) Canada
3. Fabian Keiser (Swi) Switzerland
4. Eduardo Torres Avelar (ESa) El Salvador
Second round
Heat 2
1. Chris Hoy (GBr) Team Sky +HD
2. Ross Edgar (GBr) Great Britain
3. Andrii Vynokurov (Ukr) Ukraine
4. Kamil Kuczynski (Pol) Poland
5. Rene Enders (Ger) Germany
6. Charlie Conord (Fra) France
Start of the eventful final
Final
1. Kévin Sireau (Fra) Cofidis
2. Hodei Mazquiaran Uria (Spa) Spain
3. Andrii Vynokurov (Ukr) Ukraine
4. Ross Edgar (GBr) Great Britain
REL Gregory Bauge (Fra) US Creteil
Places 7-12
7. Kamil Kuczynski (Pol) Poland
8. Rene Enders (Ger) Germany
9. Takashi Sakamoto (Jpn) Japan
10. Charlie Conord (Fra) France
11. Itmar Esteban Herraiz (Spa) Catalunya
12. Adam Duvendeck (USA) Hawk Relay Cycling
Women’s Team Sprint
Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! Winners Anna Meares and Kaarle McCulloch
Great Britain fielded a young team in this event with Olympic Academy riders Anna Blyth and World Cup newcomer, Helen Scott. In qualifying, Anna’s bike went into the gate for her to lead the duo off and they completed their two laps of the track in 35.410, a time good enough to take them through to the finals for the Bronze medal.
In that, they came up against China and despite going quicker, the Chinese went much quicker and took the bronze off the young British paring. Helen Scott speaking about her first ever World Cup: “Its been really great. It has been tough and puts into perspective just how good these girls are.”
“Seeing all the others around me getting up and performing really well does spur you on and help you get focused. Yesterday for my first time trial I was very nervous, but today, I was more excited and wanted to get out there and do my best.”
“I really enjoyed it today -- I love the Team Sprint, one of my favourite events so hopefully the coaches will be happy with me. It’s just a shame we couldn’t get that bronze. It has been brilliant and its not over yet as I have the Keirin tomorrow and I’ll try and mix it with the girls there.”
Qualification
1. Toshiba 0.34.058 (52.851 km/h)
Kaarle McCulloch, Anna Meares
2. Germany 0.34.530
3. China 0.35.333
4. Great Britain 0.35.410
Final
1. Team Toshiba 0.33.854 (53.169 km/h)
2. Germany 0.34.653
3. China 0.34.897
4. Great Britain 0.35.311
Women’s Point Race
Britain had two teams, 100% ME and GB in the Points race for Women with two riders in each of the heats. Lizzie Armitstead and Katie Colclough were riding in 100% ME colours and for GB were Lucy Martin and Alex Greenfield. Of the four, like in the Scratch race on Friday, three of them managed to make the final with Lizzie Armitstead, Katie Colclough, Alex Greenfield getting enough points to make the top 12 in their heats whilst Lucy Martin missed out.
The final was nothing short of awesome. After a steady start, once the attacking started, it never stopped and while half the field followed Lizzie Armitstead around the track including the World Cup leader from Italy, eventually a break went and fittingly it was Lizzie’s teammate who managed to get into the break, Katie Colclough.
Her small group got their lap eventually but Colclough was short on points and sitting down in fourth or fifth place. With some help from her British teammates though, the young lady got herself into the points in a sprint and that lifted her up into the Silver medal position with the final sprint left. Thankfully for her, only one rider from her break got ahead of her in that sprint and that was the eventual winner, Eleonora Van Dijk who got a single point.
Katie had held onto her second position and well deserved it was too after a gutsy ride not just by her but Lizzie and Alex as well. Afterwards she told us “That was really good and they worked really well for me. I wasn’t sure if I was getting a medal or not so its great to find I have. That was one of the hardest races I have ever done and I’m not sure if I was under geared because I was spinning out all the time. I struggled in the qualifiers and so was quite nervous for the final which I prefer.”
Qualification
Heat 1
1. Wan Yiu Wong (Hong Kong, China) 8 pts
2. Marta Tagliaferro (Italy) 5
3. Debora Galvez Lopez (Spain) 5
6. Alexandra Greenfield (Great Britain) 4
12. Katie Colclough (Team 100% ME) 1
Heat 2
1. Xiao Juan Diao (Hong Kong, China) 5 pts
2. Tara Whitten (Canada) 5
3. Yumari Gonzalez Valdivieso (Cuba) 5
5. Elizabeth Armitstead (Team 100% ME) 4
14. Lucy Martin (Great Britain)
Final
1. Eleonora Van Dijk (Netherlands) 28 pts
2. Katie Colclough (Team 100% ME) 24
3. Shelley Olds (United States Of America) 23
4. Tara Whitten (Canada) 22
5. Marta Tagliaferro (Italy) 22
6. Giorgia Bronzini (Italy) 21
7. Elizabeth Armitstead (Team 100% ME) 10
DNF Alexandra Greenfield (Great Britain)
Women’s 500 M TT
Britain had two riders in this final, Victoria Pendleton and Anna Blyth and it was the Leeds rider Blyth who was first to go of the Brits and finished the two laps of the track in 35.626. Victoria followed a few heats later but was unable to match the time of the world champion Guerra and after being in fourth place after her ride, former Olympic champion Anna Meares came out and pushed Victoria down another spot in the final ride of the event.
1. Lisandra Guerra (above) Cuba 0.34.145 (52.716 km/h)
2. Sandie Clair (Fra) France 0.34.172
3. Willy Kanis (Ned) Netherlands 0.34.256
4. Anna Meares (Aus) Toshiba 0.34.287
5. Victoria Pendleton (GBr) Sky+HD 0.34.417
9. Anna Blyth (GBr) Great Britain 0.35.626
Men’s Kilo
After destroying the hopes of the Endurance riders in the Pursuit, Taylor Phinney of the USA came out and beat the best sprinters in the world over a distance of 1 kilometre. For GB, the winner at Manchester, David Daniell recorded a time of 1.03.153 to finish 8th.
1. Taylor Phinney (USA) United States Of America 1.01.641 (58.402 km/h)
2. Michaël d'Almeida (Fra) US Creteil 1.02.071
3. Quentin Lafargue (Fra) France 1.02.134
4. Kamil Kuczynski (Pol) Poland 1.02.591
5. Yevhen Bolibrukh (Ukr) Ukraine 1.02.725
6. Tim Veldt (Ned) Netherlands 1.02.785
7. François Pervis (Fra) Cofidis 1.02.904
8. David Daniell (GBr) Great Britain 1.03.153
Men’s Scratch Race
Final sprint with Mori on the left second to the Germ but winner being ahead on laps gained.
No riders from Britain this race due to the clash with the Team Pursuit. The race was won by Kazuhiro Mori of Japan from six day star Franco Marvulli, Switzerland and Daniel Holloway (USA).
Darren Kenny Hour Record, 40.516 kilometres
Not part of the World Cup programme, four time Paralympic champion in Beijing, Darren Kenny’s record attempt is a private challenge that he and his coach Gary Brickley took on and the Danish organisers were happy to help him out.
It started at 7pm on Saturday night and there were all the Tissot people and commissiares and officials as well as a small crowd who had stayed back to cheer him on. Darren started quickly and his coach had to calm him down which he did. Darren then circled the track lap after lap and after the hour, the gun went and Darren collapses into the arms of his coach who helped him off his bike and onto the floor of the track.
Darren was in such a state, that a doctor came over to him as well and slowly he came around and was given water before being given his road bike to do one more lap of the track. Afterwards, the Danish organisers gave him some flowers and he spoke to us. “That was horrible. I think I controlled it quite well but it was still worse than the previous record attempt.”
“That was seriously unpleasant but I am pleased with the distance. Originally we wanted to do the athletes record but first thought it better to get the other record first. With Team GB, it is all about the bike and all that so I wanted to go out there and do it without that excuse if you like. The bike was good and although I only got it from Terry (Dolan) last night, we got the position just right and it handled well, really smooth.”
“Gary and I felt we needed something for me to focus on between Beijing and whenever and learn some new skills and looking back on it, it has been fun even though it doesn’t feel very pleasant right now!”
Congratulations to Darren and Gary on the record.
More Photos
Mark Christian leads 100% ME in the Team Pursuit.
Chris Hoy starts off with another win in the keirin
Edgar wins his repechage
Matt Parker briefs his riders before the qualifying
Alex Greenfield at the front of the race for lap after lap leading up to an important sprint.
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