Katie Archibald claimed her 20th European title as she was on imperious form, winning three gold medals at the European Track Championships in Switzerland.
EuroTrack
It was a golden week in Grenchen for Katie Archibald, with a hat-trick of trips to the top step of the podium.
Archibald opened her campaign with fellow Scot Neah Evans as they produced some stunning stuff in the Team Pursuit to send the Great Britain squad to gold.
Evans, who also came home seventh in the Points Race, pointed to Paris after the Team Pursuit gold:
“We’re really pleased with the result and it’s really exciting for the future”.
The omnium was a display of individual dominance with Archibald claiming victory in the first three events, before riding conservatively in the final points race to win the Omnium by over 31 points – the equivalent of a full lap gain and two sprint wins.
Archibald rounded off the perfect week in the Madison, with partner Elinor Barker. The duo produced a masterclass in madison riding – winning six of the 12 sprints – including an excellent piece of teamwork in the final dash to the line.
A third gold of the week, and Archibald’s 20th (yes twentieth!) European title.
Afterwards Katie said:
“I’ve only missed one Europeans in my career, it’s the first thing I wore a GB jersey for. I was selected in 2013 to ride with El for the first time, and I’ve only missed once since then, which was last year. It’ll now be my 10th season of having a European jersey and I’m proud every time I get to do that.
“I’ve got five really big targets between now and the Games, which is one way to look at it, but the other way is that it’s a European title, and that’s something I’m always happy with."
There were more medals for the Scots , with Jack Carlin and Ali Fielding claiming silver in the Team Sprint, while Lauren Bell also came home with a silver medal in the women’s event.
Bell also finished a fantastic sixth against the clock in the 500m Time Trial with a time of 33.710, which is a new personal best for the Forres rider and is a new Scottish record (subject to ratification).
Scots Abroad
Anna Shackley (Team SD Worx) claimed the best ever result by a Scottish rider on the UCI Women’s WorldTour with a fourth overall in the UAE Tour. A strong ride on the queen stage to Jebel Hafeet saw Shackley finish seventh on the stage and move up the general classification.
In Mallorca, there were a couple of great performances from the Scots racing for Anexo Group RT at the Junior Trofeu Bicis Sancho Manacor as Elliot Rowe claimed the victory, with Joe Cosgrove finishing in third.
There was a first outing too this season for Oscar Onley (Team DSM), who made the short journey from his training camp in Calpe to head to the Algarve for the UCI 1.1 Figueira Champions Classic. Onley was in the break early on, however stomach cramps put a damper on a positive performance as he came home in 58th place. The former Spokes RT rider will look to bounce back at this week’s Volta a Algarve.
Doonbank Trofee
Sunday saw the 9th Doonbank Trofee in Ayr, which acted as the final round of the Super Quaich Series, Alex Ball (Pedal Power) and Lettie McDonald (Vanelli Project Go) taking the overall series honours.
Ball claimed victory on the day too in the senior men’s race, while Rebecca Saunderson (Studio Velo) won out in the senior women’s race.
RACE National
Scottish Cycling hosted the latest of the RACE (Regional Academy of Cycling Excellence) National sessions this weekend, with this session for Track Endurance riders.
Scottish Cycling Performance Endurance Coach and former Team Scotland rider Evan Oliphant led the session at the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome with a particular focus on the Madison. Keep your eyes peeled for more RACE sessions in a whole range of disciplines over the coming months.
