UCI TRACK CYCLING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS, FRANCE, DAY 4 NEW ZEALAND WRAP
New Zealand cycling stars from the Commonwealth Games, Bryony Botha and Aaron Gate, added world championship medals to their bounty on the penultimate day at the UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Paris.
Botha scored her first individual medal at a world championship, gaining a silver medal in the 3000m individual pursuit in a desperately close final against last year’s silver medallist Franziska Brausse from Germany.
Gate added to his illustrious career with the bronze medal in the four-discipline omnium competition, his third world championship medal in the event after gold in 2013 and silver in 2017.
Botha set the Commonwealth Games record in the individual pursuit on her way to the gold medal in London before suffering a punctured lung in a crash during the scratch race which hampered her preparation for the world championships.
“I didn’t know what to expect here or what form I was in. I was a little concerned with my lung after that crash as it can be career-ending so I was quite happy to get back into training and find a bit of form,” said Botha.
“I had more time off that I wanted and the build-up was different as I got sick in the middle of it. So, it wasn’t super-great and therefore I had no idea what I could do today.
“I was super-stoked to do a 3:19 in qualifying and make the gold ride. It was a bit gutting to find out I had got in the lead with a lap to go but I left absolutely everything out on the track.
“I would like to think I have the potential to be a world champion. I want to keep working on it and hopefully next year will be my year.”
The 24-year-old from Auckland secured the first women’s individual pursuit medal at the world championships in a decade. New Zealand female riders have a strong history in the event dating back to a silver medal for Madonna Harris in Japan in 1990, with Ulmer winning gold in Melbourne in 2004 before Alison Shanks won two world titles and a silver in the event from 2009 to 2012.
Botha returns to the track tomorrow to compete in the Points race.
Gate made a superb start in the four-event omnium, winning the first-across-the-line Scratch race and third in the Tempo, with points awarded every lap. He was sixth in the Elimination, where the last rider goes out on every second lap, to leave him second overall going into the pivotal Points race where massive gains and losses can occur over the 100-lap race.
The Kiwi covered his rivals and gained useful points but a flat tyre in the closing laps threatened his chances, with his third placing secured after a lengthy delay by officials.
Gate had positioned himself to go with a final surge seven laps from the finish by ultimate winner Ethan Hayter and Frenchman Benjamin Thomas, when he was forced down on the bottom of the track to avoid another rider.
“It was super-frustrating at the time. I must have picked up some grit or debris and was enough for the front tyre to go. I was hoping it would stay inflated long enough to get to the finish – in the end it was enough to hold on to third,” said Gate.
“Luck was on my side a few times today. In hindsight the flat was a bit gutting as I did not have a final crack to win but at the same time, I am still pretty happy how it went.
“It’s been a long season with one race to go which is 200 laps in the Madison with Campbell Stewart who is in really good form. Hopefully my legs recover and we can give it a good nudge and another shot at that rainbow jersey.”
Earlier Michaela Drummond and Ally Wollaston finished a solid eighth place in the 120-lap madison, picking up early points, but finished when Drummond was caught in a nasty crash late in the race.
The championships conclude tomorrow with Ellesse Andrews competing in the keirin, Botha in the points race, Corbin Strong in the elimination race and Gate combining with Stewart in the madison.
Results:
Men omnium: Scratch: Aaron Gate (NZL) 1; Shunsuke (JPN) 2, Kelland O’Brien (AUS) 3. Tempo: Imamura 41 points, 1; Ethan Hayter (GBR) 29, 2; Gate 24, 3. Elimination: Benjamin Thomas (FRA) 1, Hayter 2, Dylan Bibic (CAN) 3. Also: Gate 6. Points: Niklas Larsen (DEN) 45 points, 1; Hayter 32, 2; Thomas 31, 3. Also: Gate 12, 10. Total: Hayter 147, 1; Thomas 127, 2; Gate 118, 3.
Women 3000m individual pursuit, qualifying: Franziska Brausse (GER) 3:18.784, 1; Bryony Botha (NZL) 3:19.378, 2; Mieke Kroger (GER) 3:19.947, 3; Josie Knight (GBR) 3:20.792, 4. Gold medal ride: Brausse 3:19.427, 1; Botha 3:19.869, 2. Bronze media ride: Knight 3:21.459, 3; Kroger 3:22.002, 4.
Women’s Madison: Belgium 32 points, 1; France 31 points, 2; Denmark 23 points, 3. Also: New Zealand (Michaela Drummond, Ally Wollaston) 10 points, 8.