British Juniors Batter the World Class Opposition

 

Revolution Track Meeting
Saturday 18th November 2006
Report: Eddie Allen, Images Richard Robotham & Larry Hickmott

 

Photographs: A selection of the Best images from the night >>> Revolution 14 Pictures

 

Another packed velodrome with a record crowd greeted the fourteenth edition of the Revolution track series at the National Cycling Centre in Manchester and this time there was a veritable smorgasbord of international talent of all ages on show for the eager hordes.

The pre race buzz was tangible, with a full car park an hour before the event and the velodrome humming with eager fans of all ages, plenty of trade stands and the South Bank Grill doing a roaring trade in burgers and hot dogs. For the more culturally enlightened, there was free wine tasting going on in the track centre amid the throng of autograph hunters, mobbing the top riders.

David Millar was back and greeted with loud cheers when presented to the crowd. Millar was joined by two-time Giro winner Gilberto Simoni, Cofidis pro Jimmy Casper and a brace of Discovery Channel riders in Yaroslav Popovych (white jersey, TDF 06) and Roger Hammond (3rd Paris Roubaix). As well as road stars, Australian track ace Brad McGee was also back at Revolution along with many of the World's best Junior Sprinters. The line-up was topped off with a Future Stars line-up littered with promise.

 

A hot night of action was guaranteed - and the riders of the Revolution did not disappoint.

Elite Italian Pursuit 1.75km

The Italian pursuit differs from the garden variety team pursuit in that the lead rider peels off after each lap, until there's only one man racing at the end. The event gave the organisers a great chance to showcase the international talent who had travelled to Manchester and they got the night off to a cracking start.

 

Gilberto Simoni led the home straight team off with David O'Loughlin leading the back straight team. O'Loughlin lept away from the start  at speed, leaving roadman Popovych and his team mates struggling to keep up. One by one, the riders peeled off leaving Wiggins against Millar on the last lap with the win going to the home straight team of Simoni, Wiggins, McGee, Hammond, Blythe, Rowe and Kennaugh. Phew!

Result
1. Home Straight Team
2. Back Straight Team

Revolution Women's Sprint Omnium - 200m Time Trial
The opener of the women's sprint events saw the international talent taking to the track one by one to set a flying 200 metre time. Anouk Ligthart opened the action with a 12.973. GB's Becki James immediately relegated the German, pulling a 12.483 from her youthful legs. Jessica Varnish from the West Midlands immediately topped it with an unofficial new national record of 12.449 a day before her 16th birthday. Next up, Germany's Hannah Welte couldn't match Varnish with a 12.888.

GB's Lucy Ayres followed with an electric 12.114 whilst World Junior Champion (Scratch race) Elise Van Hage of Holland found it a tough act to follow and dropped into third at with a 12.473. Charleen Delev was next up for Germany but couldn't match Ayres with a 12.383.

 

A frequent visitor to Britain, and a Bronze medal winner in the World Junior Championships, Sandie Clair was the penultimate rider to go and dropped into second with a 12.229. The best however, was left to last and World Junior Keirin Champion Anna Blyth, dutifully battered the opposition with an electrifying 11.590. Way to go Anna!

 

Brilliant action shot by Richard Robotham of Anna in full flight!

1. Anna Blyth
2. Sandie Clair
3. Elise Van Hage

DHL Future Stars Points Race - Boys 5km
The points race always provides absorbing action and a mathematical workout for spectators. With strong teams from around the regions of Great Britain, fast and furious battles ensued. First sprint was taken by Toby Meadows (South West Region) and then Alex Breary took top honours in the second sprint with Sam Fry showing well, as he did in the first sprint.

 

The group then began to fragment as the pace and frequent sprints took their toll and the third sprint was taken by the Isle of Man's Chris Whorrall. With four riders on 5 points going into the last sprint, it was all to play for and eventual winner Ben Plain (below) secured victory with a point in the sprint won by Mike Webb of Wales.

 

1. Ben Plain - 6 points
2. Mike Webb - 5 points
3. Tom Skubala - 5 points

Elite Devil/Scratch Race 6km
All the international stars were back out on the track for the first bunch race of the night for them. Scotland's young sprinter Shane Charlton was first to be consumed by the devil followed by the first big shock exit, Yaroslav Popovych. Glendene's Andy Griffiths was next to go followed by Russell Hampton. Rhys Lloyd and Tom Murray quickly succumbed with veteran Malcolm Elliot next to depart.

 

The field continued to thin inexorably, while Wiggins and McGee sat comfortably at the front, led by Glendene CC rider Matt Rowe. In an effort to shake things up, former World Cyclo-Cross champion Roger Hammond jumped off the front to escape the devil and really shook up the field.

 

The GB rider was really looking good on the boards and with Hammond a quarter of a lap ahead, the chase behind him was full on, the pace seeing riders being spat out the back at a furious rate. Tony Gibb and Ian Stannard reeled in the waning Hammond whilst at the back, Casper cracked as Millar was eliminated. On the bell lap, triple Olympic medallist Bradley Wiggins pipped the other Brad (McGee) to the win with World Junior Champion Peter Kennaugh of the Isle of Man third.

1. Bradley Wiggins
2. Bradley McGee
3. Peter Kennaugh

Revolution Sprint - Round 1
Heat 1
The son of a legend in the sport, Sacha Hubner led out the Frenchman Nicholas Bourin and the Great Britain Olympic Development rider Steven Hill. On the bell, Hubner held off pressure from Hill to take the win.

1. Sacha Hubner
2. Steven Hill
3. Nichols Bourin

Heat 2
Tobias Wachter took the race to the two British riders who are in the Olympic Development Squad but, amazingly, on the bell Wachter lost his tyre and carried on sprinting! As Mitchell dived beneath him to avoid hitting him, World Junior champion, the North East's Daniell was forced wide. However Daniell managed to keep the momentum going to capitalise on the German's misfortune and take the win.

1. David Daniell
2. Peter Mitchell
3. Tobias Wachter

Heat 3
British World Junior Champion (Team Sprint)  Christian Lyte led this match out, keeping a close eye on the Dutch and French riders. Then, at the bell, Lyte put the hammer down and sprinted for the line for all his worth but was finally outgunned by another World Junior Championship medallist, Boiron of France.

1. Ghislan Boiron
2. Christian Lyte
3. Jeffrey Kuipers

Heat 4
Joshua Hargreaves led out the final heat with Bos and Kenny eyeing each other behind before the triple World Junior Champion, Kenny, headed them all home for a comfortable win.
1. Jason Kenny
2. Joshua Hargreaves
3. Yorick Bos

DHL Future Stars Devil - Girls
A twist on the usual devil format with 2 riders eliminated per lap until just four remain. First to go were Jess Allen and Hannah Rich from Wales. Ella Hopkins and Corrine Hall succumbed next and left the rapidly thinning field. Once the field thinned to the final 4 Alex Greenfield of Wales took a comfortable win.

1. Alex Greenfield
2. Alice Monger Godfrey
3. Helen Clayton

Revolution Women's Sprint Omnium - Round 1
Heat 1
Anna Blyth led out the German and Dutch riders. At the bell, Van Hage challenged briefly but could not come around the storming Blyth.

1. Anna Blyth
2. Charleen Delev
3. Elise Van Hage

Heat 2
French rider, Sandie Clair led out, flanked by the other two riders. At the bell the German rider challenged but Ayres slid through underneath. However on the line, she couldn't match the power of Clair.

1. Sandie Clair
2. Lucy Ayres
3. Hannah Welte

Heat 3 
This match saw West Midlands rider Jess Varnish comfortably beating fellow Olympic Development Programme rider Becky James and Dutch rider Ligthart.

1. Jess Varnish
2. Anouk Ligthart
3. Becky James

Revolution Sprint - Semi Finals

Heat 1
Dave Daniell and Sacha Hubner played cat and mouse for the first lap. Daniell took a long lead but Hubner lit the afterburners to almost catch the Brit but Daniell showed class to buy a place in the final.

1. Dave Daniel
2. Sacha Hubner

Heat 2
Ghislain Boiron led out World Junior Champion Kenny giving him three bike-lengths on the first lap. Boiron went high leading Kenny all over the track. Kenny gave the Frenchman what seemed a little too much breathing space before going for the gun and narrowly beating Boiron in a thrilling photo finish.

1. Jason Kenny
2. Ghislain Bouron

Royles Elite Points Race 10km
The 40 lap points race saw sprint points every ten laps with the cream of Europe's road and track talent once again gracing the boards. The riders strung out in the initial few laps. McGee began to creep around the outside with 3 laps to go to the first sprint. First sprint though was taken by National Circuit Race champion James Taylor with Pete Williams taking second and Brad McGee taking third.

 

As sprint two loomed, Gibb and Stannard put the hammer down with Gibb taking the top points from Olympic Academy rider Stannard. Popovych then went off the front like a train and took a quarter of a lap in only three laps. He was quickly reeled in though as he slowed and was replaced by Andy Griffiths from Glendene.

 

As James Taylor retired, Millar led the chase for the Glendene rider. Gibb took a further 3 points and led with one sprint remaining. Then Junior Peter Kennaugh threw caution to the wind in an all out effort to take the race to his senior rivals, and the Isle of Man rider attacked hard off the front, taking a lap with metres to spare and the overall win. What a finish! 

1. Peter Kennaugh - 10 points
2. Tony Gibb - 8 points

DHL Future Stars 5K Scratch Race - Girls 5km
Cagey is the word that described the opening of the girl's scratch race, with riders psyching each other out. At the halfway stage, the pace hotted up with the pack lined out around the track. Emma Trott went off the front with around 1.5km to go but ran out of steam and dropped back into the pack. At two laps to go, prolific winner Alex Greenfield hit the front and led at the bell but was quickly passed by her younger rival Laura Trott from Welwyn Garden City and Greenfield was beaten on line after a brilliant effort from Trott.

1. Laura Trott
2. Alex Greenfield
3. Katie Fernehough

Revolution Womens Sprint Omnium - Round 2

Heat 1
Ayres led out with the German Delev at the back. At the bell they were shoulder to shoulder but Ayres showed her class to take the win.

1. Lucy Ayres
2. Jess Varnish
3. Charleen Delev

Heat 2
Sandie Clair led out with Becky James taking a back seat at the bell. Clair's sheer power meant that the result was inevitable.

1. Sandie Clair
2. Elise Van Hage
3. Becky James

Heat 3
The final heat saw Welte at the front at the bell but when Blyth unloaded her effort, she was so far ahead at the line that she could sit up and take the applause.

1. Anna Blyth
2. Anouk Ligthart
3. Hannah Welte

DHL Future Stars Devil - Boys
As in the girl's race, the devil took two hapless souls per lap. The 'two per lap' format made things all the more urgent with a solid place at the head of the field the only real security. The final quartet emerged with the final honours going to Andy Fenn from the South East Region by a margin of just 7cm from the North West's Mark Christian (Isle of Man).

1. Andy Fenn
2. Mark Christian
3. Mike Webb

SIS Elite 4 Station Pursuit 2km
Another interesting twist on the pursuit theme, the 4 station pursuit saw the classy Irish rider David O'Loughlin mixing it with the likes of the best pursuiters in the world in Wiggins, Millar and McGee. McGee quickly closed on Millar ahead of him in the opening stages and looked to be building an unassailable lead. However, O'Loughlin came on strong to take the win after Wiggins had given himself a lot to do in the final few laps, managing to push Millar into fourth by the finish but failing to win as many had expected the Olympic champion to.

 

1. David O'Loughlin
2. Brad McGee
3. Bradley Wiggins
4. David Millar

Revolution Sprint - Losers 6 Lap Dash 1.5km
The 6 lap dash saw the losers from the sprints battle it out in a 10 man free for all. With a few laps to go, the German riders took to the front but were swamped by the rampaging Ghislain Boiron and the British pair of Lyte and Hill.

1. Ghislain Boiron
2. Christian Lyte
3. Steven Hill
4. Nicolas Bourin

Revolution Sprint - Final
An all-British sprint final was always going to be explosive. Kenny took up the role of mouse to Daniell's cat on the first lap. At the bell Kenny, steamrollered past, with a crushing air of inevitability, to take the win.

1. Jason Kenny
2. Dave Daniell

DHL Future Stars Points Race - Girls 5km
Alex Greenfield went into the race leading the points classification from Katie Fernehough. First blood went to Helen Clayton followed by Lucy Martin. Fernehough took 1 point to close the gap on Greenfield. With a lap to go to the 2nd sprint, Jess Allen of Wales took the lead and held off Jess Booth for maximum points.

 

A split of three riders emerged prior to the third sprint with Alice Monger Godfrey taking the 5 points. Fernehough then took a further point. With one sprint to go Clayton led Allen and Godfrey by two points. Jess Booth took the final sprint from Hannah Rich but Clayton took 2 points and the overall win.

1. Helen Clayton
2. Jess Booth
3. Jess Allen
4. Alice Monger Godfrey

Revolution Women's Sprint Omnium - Round 3

Heat 1
Delev took to the front tailed by Olympic Development Programme rider Becky James. At the bell James took up the chase but Delev was too strong and took the win.

1. Charleen Delev
2. Anouk Ligthart
3. Becky James

Heat 2
Van Hage easily took the heat from the front from Jess Varnish and Hannah Welte.

1. Elise Van Hage
2. Jess Varnish
3. Hannah Welte

Heat 3
The third and final heat saw the daunting figure of Anna Blyth take on Sandie Clair and Lucy Ayres in perhaps the hardest of all the heats. Ayres led out with teammate Blyth bringing up the rear. Blyth jumped both riders before the bell and the classy British rider wound up the pace over the final lap and was barely troubled at the line taking the win and the omnium as a whole.

1. Anna Blyth
2. Lucy Ayres
3. Sandie Clair

DHL Future Stars 5K Scratch Race - Boys 5km
With the top three in the overall points standings close, the free-for-all of the scratch race would prove the decider. First attack came from Matt Jones of the North West region, stringing the field out. Jones gave up and swung up and immediately Erik Rowsell took his place. Rowsell's break stimulated a big response from the field and he quickly succumbed.

 

There followed a mellowing of the pace and a tactical rethink at 7 laps to go. Sam Patrick was next to go off the front at 4 laps to go, gambling on a winning break. He held the pack for around 2 laps before being eaten up. At the bell Freeman led but was beaten on the line by Toby Meadows.

 

1. Toby Meadows
2. Sam Freeman
3. Chris Whorrall
4. Dane Percival

Revolution Keirin

 

The drone of the Derny bike signalled the only Keirin event of the night and what was to turn out to be an upset as our World Champion Jason Kenny was defeated for the first time in a long while.

Race 1
Race 1 had a trio of Brits to keep the crowd interested. Christian Lyte took the wheel of the Derny as the pace wound up. As the Derny pulled off, Hubner put the power down but was quickly swamped. At the bell, Lyte lit the afterburners and beat Hill and Kuipers to the top honours.

1. Christian Lyte
2. Steven Hill
3. Jeffrey Kuipers

Race 2
Jason Kenny, Junior World Keirin Champion was no doubt a watched man and wisely sat towards the rear of the group. Dave Daniell took first wheel behind the Derny as the tempo gradually increased. The Derny swung off and Boiron came over the top to take the lead and start the charge for the line. Kenny, back in fourth then lit up the track to try to catch Boiron but was narrowly edged out at the line.

1. Ghislain Boiron
2. Jason Kenny
3. Josh Hargreaves

Plowman Craven Elite 15km Scratch Race

The final event of the evening was the epic 60 lap bunch race with the endurance stars giving the crowd a final treat. First off the front was Andy Griffiths of Glendene CC resulting in Brad McGee cracking the whip and bringing things back together. The field then strung out with the heightened pace. Casper called it a night around the halfway mark with the pace high and the riders strung out in a long line. With 23 laps to go, no-one was interested in showing their hand too early with the race resembling a mammoth team pursuit, the pace creeping up all the time.

 

Millar then kicked and split the race with a trio dropping out of the back. James Taylor, who'd been suffering all night, took an early departure at around 12 laps to go. The Stannard blew off the front and quickly took the length of the straight, splitting the field in two. Stannard relented and Wiggins and Hammond broke free and completely fragmented the field in what seemed the pivotal move of the race. Then Kennaugh made the catch and passed Wiggins and Hammond. When it seemed a three horse race for the line, Adam Blythe came from nowhere, towing Burke and Bellis in his wake, muscling both Wiggins and Kennaugh out for the final win of the night.

1. Adam Blythe
2. Steven Burke
3. Jonny Bellis