UCI JUNIOR TRACK CYCLING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS – DAY 3 NZ WRAP
Crashes and illness proved costly for the New Zealand team on the third day of the UCI Junior Track Cycling World Championships in Switzerland.
Nelson’s Finn Fisher-Black, a member of the gold medal winning team pursuit, led the way in finishing fourth in the individual pursuit which was the best effort by the Kiwis at the UCI Velodrome in Aigle.
Cambridge 17-year-old Ally Wollaston was forced to withdraw from the omnium competition with illness. She bravely started the competition in the morning with a seventh placing in the scratch race and 17th in the tempo, but worsened throughout the day forcing her withdrawal.
Earlier George Jackson, another member of the winning team pursuit, was caught in a crash in the morning heats of the points race. Unfortunately the Oceania Points Champion was unable to continue and therefore missed out on a place in the evening final.
Fisher-Black, just 16 as a first-year junior, showed his potential with a superb 3:14.921 effort in the morning qualifying for the 3000m individual pursuit, the fastest time ever by a Kiwi rider at the junior world championships.
He was third fastest to put him into the bronze medal ride against Russia’s Gleb Syritsa but the young Kiwi could not quite replicate that effort in a second tough ride of the day. He managed 3:17.014 with the Russian able to edge ahead throughout the contest, leaving the young New Zealander to finish fourth but give a hint on his undoubted potential for next year.
Teammate Jarred Treymane clocked 3:21.602 to be 20th.
Earlier Levin sprinter Thomas Garbutt qualified 19th fastest in the individual sprint in 10.501s to qualify him for the elimination rounds. He beat off the challenge from Korea’s Shin Jun Seo Moon with an excellent ride in the first round but was edged by just 56/1000ths of a second in his second round against Australia’s Thomas Cornish.
Tomorrow’s penultimate day of action features Corbin Strong in the men’s omnium, Shaane Fulton and Sophie-Leigh Bloxham in the 500m time trial, Annamarie Lipp in the Points race with Sami Donnelly and McKenzie Milne in the 2000m individual pursuit.
Day 3 results:
Men Sprint qualifying: Jakub Stastny (CZE) 10.103, 1; Leigh Hoffman (AUS) 10.037, 2; Thomas Cornish (AUS) 10.041, 3. Also: Thomas Garbett (NZL) 10.501, 19 3. Round 1: Garbutt bt Shin Jun Seo Moon (KOR) by 0.077s. Round 2: Cornish bt Garbett by 0.056s.
Individual Pursuit qualifying: Lev Gonov (RUS) 3:11.143, 1; Ethan Vernon (GBR) 3:12.226, 2; Finn Fisher-Black (NZL) 3:14.921, 3. Also: Jarred Treymane (NZL) 3:21.602, 20. Gold medal ride: Gonov 3:13.400 bt Vernon 3:14.067, 2. Bronze medal ride: Gleb Syritsa (RUS) 3:15.251, 3; bt Fisher-Black 3:17.014, 4.
Women omnium, Scratch race: Ellie Russell (GBR) 1, Victoire Berteau (FRA) 2, Vittoria Guazzini (ITA) 3. Also: Ally Wollaston (NZL) 7. Tempo: Guazzini 8 points, 1; Marta Jaskulska (POL) 4, 2; Alexandra Martin-Wallace (AUS) 3, 3. Also: Wollaston 17. Elimination: Guazzini 1, Catalina Soto Campos (CHI) 2, Shari Bossuyt (BEL) 3. Also: Wollaston dns. Overall: Guazzini 1, Daria Malkova (RUS) 2, Jaskulska 3.
CAPTION: Ally Wollaston in action during the scratch race of the omnium at the UCI Junior Track World Championships in Aigle, Switzerland. Credit: ©klementdesign – UCI