GB’s Strength In-depth for the Team Pursuit

 

March 24, 2007

By Larry Hickmott (larryhickmott@britishcycling.org.uk)

Home Page Track Worlds

 

Bradley Wiggins, one of the riders favourite to retain his place in the team pursuit for the World Championships, leads Rob Hayles, Ed Clancy and Geraint Thomas during the second effort on Thursday.

 

Like the Sprint squad, selection for the Endurance events at the Track Worlds is now a tricky equation for the coaches and managers with so many of the Endurance riders at the same World Class level and there are more on the way up through the Academy programme whilst others like Steve Cummings are expected to come back in Olympic year.

 

The event everyone in the Endurance squad wants to be part of is the Team Pursuit, the core event for them and through out the Pre-Worlds two week training camp, the riders have been very busy on the track and in very good form if what the coaches says is anything to go by.

 

The pinnacle of the week came on the Thursday before they all left from Liverpool to travel to Majorca on the Friday. All week, the coaches and managers had been looking at the riders perform, collecting data from the SRMs and efforts on the track. Thursday though was the final day of efforts and a selection day where the six riders would be ranked from 1 to 6 with the first four, likely to be the four that take to the track for the qualifying round on day 2 of the World Track Championships.

 

The final session was set down for 9.25am and it was clear this was a special session. Coaches from within GB and across many disciplines were around in the track centre or in the stands watching. On the track were the six riders selected to go to Palma and they were asked to ‘race’ a 3k effort rolling effort.

 

Director of coaching, Chris Boardman, Performance Director Dave Brailsford, Performance Manager Shane Sutton and coach Matt Parker discussing the team's performance. 

 

First on the track were five riders, Paul Manning, Rob Hayles, Ed Clancy, Chris Newton, and Bradley Wiggins. It was Paul Manning’s job to get them up to speed and lead ‘them in’ before the rest did the business as the coaches had asked them to.

 

Once that effort was finished, the riders had a rest for 30 minutes before another effort was required. Bradley Wiggins, and Rob Hayles were required again and joining them for the 3k effort was Paul Manning and Geraint Thomas with Ed Clancy doing the ‘lead in’. Race pace and near race spec bikes, the foursome completed the 3k in under three minutes and once that effort was completed, the riders melted away to their pit and the staff set about discussing what they had just seen.

 

Everyone of the riders knows a World Title is on offer if selected and the staff certainly know they have a challenge ahead of them to select the foursome that will go out on the track on Day 2. Endurance coach Matt Parker had this to say about the selection process: “we have six lads who in any combination can get up and take on the World so its making it extremely difficult. Everyone has performed well in training and is looking strong and will get stronger in the next week.”

 

“We have collected data through out the training camp and on that basis the team will select itself. It’s exciting to also have two youngsters (Clancy and Thomas) pushing for a spot in that six and its important for everyone to recognise despite their age, they are there on merit and not just for experience.”

 

“That alone bodes well for the endurance programme but this strength in depth just means that come Palma, it will make it difficult to leave two people out but we won’t be afraid to make decisions for the benefit of the team. We’re going there to win and if for example, we had to make a change for the final for any reason, then that decision will be made too”.

 

“We looked at the Manchester World Track Cup and this World Championships to make a step forward in this event because we realise that between now and Beijing there are not that many opportunities for doing a world class Team Pursuit. So its important the team head for Palma as a strong unit which will give us a good foundation for the future.”  

 

Early on Thursday morning, the riders are taken out of their 'comfort zone' at the Team Hotel and asked to do two 3K race pace efforts on the track before leaving for Majorca.

 

Rider interviews

 

Paul Manning

A key rider for eight years in the Team Pursuit, Paul Manning acknowledges that selection for the team to do the event is now no longer assured. “There are six of us now and you could see from the two flying efforts today, both looked as comfortable as the other within reason at race pace so its going to be a really tough call for the selectors”.  Paul started out in the Team Pursuit at the 1999 Track World Championships where he was fifth man and since then, has been in the line-up on the track.

 

More of the interview here ...>>>>>

 

Rob Hayles

A former double world champion, Rob Hayles is not only one of the senior members of the team but also one of the most successful with two medals at the last Olympics in the Team Pursuit and Madison and World titles in the same events in 2005 at the Los Angeles World Track Championships. After Gold and Silver at the Manchester World Track Cup and looking good in training pre-worlds, the wise cracking showman had a scare during the World Championship training camp when he found he had no gas left in the tank during training.

 

More of the interview here ...>>>>

 

 

Ed Clancy

A rider many regard as a certainty for selection, Bradley Wiggins, says of former Olympic Academy rider Ed Clancy in his interview “Ed is now one of the fastest riders in the world now in the pickup position”, a compliment that has help motivate Ed as he strives to make the team and finally get a shot at a World title.  In 2005, Ed rode round 1 and was then left out of the final and so although part of a World Title winning team, never actually got to wear the rainbow stripes at 19.

 

More of the interview here ...>>>>>

 

Geraint Thomas

The Cardiff rider who races for pro team Barloworld, already has a World Championship Silver medal in his collection from 2006 and had a scare during the training camp when he crashed during an effort. Talking about the final efforts in training, he says “I didn’t feel to bad today and am starting to come around after I crashed last week. I’ve had a good rest.”

 

More of the interview here ...>>>>>