Great Britain’s riders got their UCI Track World Championships off to a strong start with a pair of silver medals in the men’s and women’s team sprints.
Individual sprint world champion Emma Finucane was the only member of last year’s gold medal-winning squad in the line-up, with debutants Iona Moir and Rhianna Parris-Smith completing the team on day one in Santiago, Chile.
The trio qualified quickest, just over a tenth faster than the Dutch, and overwhelmed Colombia to make the gold medal ride. But they could not back up their qualifying exploits, ultimately finishing 0.667 seconds off the Netherlands’ Kimberley Kalee, Hetty van de Wouw and Steffie van der Peet.
Finucane, who will aim to win the individual title for a third time running on Friday, said: “I’m so proud of these two [Parris-Smith and Moir], it’s their first world championships and to go out there in the gold medal ride off, be composed, feel the pressure. I’ve been there before and it’s really hard, so to be lining up next to these two I’m really proud and we couldn’t have asked for more.”
In the men’s race Matthew Richardson - who only switched allegiance to his birth country Great Britain after last year’s Paris Olympics, having previously represented Australia - led Joe Truman and Harry Ledingham-Horn in another new-look team, with Hamish Turnball replacing Ledingham-Horn in the final.
The three qualified second-fastest, behind the well-established team of rivals Roy van den Berg, Jeffrey Hoogland and Harrie Lavreysen of the Netherlands.
Britain led after a fine start by Truman and Richardson on laps one and two, but the Dutch finisher and now 17-time world champion Lavreysen demonstrated his class to pip them to gold by over half a second.
Richardson said: “Coming away with a silver medal is bittersweet but for me, my first medal at a world championships in GB skin suit is going to feel amazing. I wish it was the top step, but I can’t come away too mad about that.”
Truman added: “I’m really happy, it’s the closest we’ve ever been to the Dutch and it’s a really positive first step in the cycle [to the LA Olympics in 2028]. We were up on them all the way to the last half lap so I think it’s a very good start and it’s exciting for what we can crack on with going forward.”
Elsewhere on day two European Madison silver medallist Maddie Leech finished sixth in the women’s scratch race, won by the Netherlands’ Lorena Wiebes in a bunch sprint.
The GB women’s team pursuit quartet of Meg Barker, Josie Knight, Anna Morris and Jess Roberts qualified second-fastest for tomorrow’s first-round encounter with Germany as they look to defend their title - albeit without Katie Archibald, who is focusing on the elimination and Madison races.
But the men’s team pursuit squad will not have the chance to fight for medals after losing to Australia in the first round, having qualified in third place.
