Olympic medallist Campbell Stewart scored his second silver medal in two days at the UCI Nations Cup track competition in Jakarta.
It is the first of three mandatory UCI Nations Cup competitions that earn ranking points to qualify for the world championships and ultimately, the Paris Olympics.
Stewart claimed the silver medal in the men’s four-discipline omnium, as New Zealand riders gained further vital ranking points with fourth in the women’s two-rider Madison for Michaela Drummond and Bryony Botha, while sprinter Sam Dakin qualified for the finals in the super-competitive keirin, finishing fifth.
Stewart produced that memorable ride at the Tokyo Olympics, coming in late for an injured Aaron Gate, and claiming the silver medal with a remarkable final burst in the Points race.
Today he was pipped for the gold in the final sprint of the same event, but enjoyed a strong Nations Cup performance. Stewart opened with sixth in the Scratch race, third in the Tempo race, and he won the exciting Elimination race.
The New Zealand rider took the overall lead going into the final 30km Points race. Denmark’s Tobias Hansen produced the gold-medal winning move when he pushed clear late in the race to lap the field and to win the penultimate sprint.
Stewart managed fourth in the double-points final sprint to end up second overall, just two points behind the Danish rider.
“It is the first stepping stone. Little bit of consistency throughout the day was the key,” said Stewart.
“I’ve been second twice in the last two days – so good points but not perfect and still plenty to learn and plenty to do.
“In the scratch race I thought I would get a better position but got flicked on the final corner. But I had a good tempo race and good elimination and collected points throughout the points race. Unfortunately Mora slipped off the front with 20 laps to go. I couldn’t quite pull it back but finished strongly.
“It was good to know that the legs were there. It wasn’t the top step that I was looking for but it is coming along and pushing towards the big goal of next year.”
Stewart returns to the track on the final day, pairing up with Aaron Gate in the two-rider Madison.
Earlier the women’s pair of Michaela Drummond and Bryony Botha finished fourth in the women’s 30km madison, pipped for a medal in the final sprint. Denmark were the only team to put a lap on the field to secure the win while France sored points on 10 of the 12 sprints to nab second.
The kiwi pair won two sprints and scored points in eight sprints to sit in third place with the double points sprint to finish. The Italians took out the last sprint with New Zealand third which was enough for Italy to finish third overall with the kiwis three points behind in fourth.
Dakin produced an excellent sprinting performance in a highly competitive men’s keirin field headed by Olympic and multi-world champion, Harrie Lavreysen (NED).
The kiwi champion won his opening heat impressively, before placing second behind Japan’s Yuta Obara in the quarterfinal. Dakin rode well in a stacked semifinal, finishing third behind world championship medallists Mikhail Yakovlev (ISR) and Lavreysen.
The final, won by Lavreysen, was a torrid race with Dakin fifth from a challenging draw, but he can be well pleased with an emphatic performance and invaluable ranking points.
Earlier Olympic medallist Ellesse Andrews exited the sprint competition in the second round, edged out by world champion Lea Friedrich (GER) in a photo finish.
Andrews qualified 19th in 11.013s, slightly below her best which meant she drew a top qualifier early in elimination rounds. She won her first round race well and rode superbly in the clash with Friedrich, the eventual runner-up, which required a photo to separate, both recording the same time.
Teammate Rebecca Petch clocked 11.230s in qualifying in 30th.
Tomorrow’s final day of competition sees Dakin in the men’s sprint, Rebecca Petch and Andrews in the keirin, Ally Wollaston in the omnium with Stewart and Gate combining in the madison.
Results, day 3:
Omnium, Scratch: Lindsay de Vylder (BEL) 1, William Tidball (TIM) 2, Sebastian Mora (ESP) 3. Also: Campbell Stewart (NZL) 6. Tempo: de Vylder 1, Philip Heijnen (NED) 2, Stewart 3. Elimination: Stewart 1, Tobias Hansen (DEN) 2, Tidball 3. Points: Hansen 50 points, 1; Oliver Wood (GBR) and Vincent Hoppezak (BCC) 40, equal 2. Also: Stewart 26, 7.
Overall Points: Hansen 134 points, 1; Stewart 132, 2; Mora 119, 3.
Women Sprint: Qualifying: Mathilde Gros (FRA) 10.514, 1; Sophie Capewell (GBR) at 10.524, 2; Lea Sophie Friedrich (GER) 10.561, 3. Also: Ellesse Andrews (NZL) 10.983, 19; Rebecca Petch (NZL) 11.240, 30.
First round: Andrews bt Luz Daniela Gaxiola (MEX). Second round: Lost to Friedrich (photo finish).
Men Keirin, First round, heat 5: Sam Dakin (NZL) 1, Vladyslav Denysenko (UKR) 2, Rafal Sarnecki (POL) 3. Quarterfinal 3: Yuta Obara (JPN) 1, Dakin 2 Stefan Botticher (GER) 3 (2 to qualify). Semifinal 1: Mikhail (ISR) 1, Harrie Lavreysen (NED) 2, Dakin 3 (3 to qualify). Final: Lavreysen 1, Mohd Awang (MAS) 2, Yakovlev 3. Also: Dakin 5.
Women Madison (30kms): Denmark 42 points, 1; France 32, 2; Italy 26, 3. Also: New Zealand (Michaela Drummond, Bryony Botha) 23, 4.