GOLDEN START
Kiwi cyclists bring home medals
Ton the Gold Coast eam sprint pioneers Ethan Mitchell, Sam Webster and Eddie Dawkins took another step in their illustrious careers by defending their Commonwealth Games title last night at Anna Meares Velodrome in Brisbane.
They were joined by silver medallists Natasha Hansen and Emma Cumming in the women’s team sprint, and Bryony Botha, Rushlee Buchanan, Kirstie James and Racquel Sheath in the women’s team pursuit.
The men led England through every lap to roll to a 0.670s triumph like pedaling dominoes.
Mitchell powered through the first circuit to take a 0.207s hold, Webster kept parity after the second lap with a 0.168s advantage which left Dawkins to power home and complete their run in 42.877s.
Earlier, they set a Games record of 42.822s, 0.694s clear of their final opponents.
The velodrome was New Zealand’s only medal hunting ground on the opening day.
The women’s team sprint of Hansen and Cumming claimed silver, finishing adrift of Australia in the final. The medal is New Zealand's first in the event at a major competition.
However, the hosts were always in command, going out to a 0.349s lead after the first lap and extending it to 0.627s at the finish.
Hansen and Cumming set a New Zealand best time of 33.321s in qualifying, 0.132s better than their previous mark at February’s world championships in the Netherlands.
The women’s team pursuit earned the country’s first medal, with silver in the event's maiden appearance.
The quartet started with pluck, but were caught by Australia in the final metre of the race. The hosts lowered their own Games record by clocking 4m 15.214s; New Zealand were 9.322s adrift. That could not dent the pride of veteran Buchanan after her podium appearance.
“It’s a huge honour to win New Zealand’s first medal [of the Games] and make history. We wanted to give the Aussies a run for their money in the first two kilometres and then hold on for dear life, which is kind of what the team pursuit is anyway.”
The team was presented with their medals by Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall.
“I wasn’t sure if I should curtsy or shake hands,” Buchanan said. “But it’s a great place to be, and I’m super proud with a silver medal, wearing the silver fern.”
James noted the moment’s bittersweetness.
“I’ve dreamed of coming to the Commonwealth Games since I was a kid. It’s pretty emotional to finally be here standing on the podium representing New Zealand.
“It’s always tough in a team pursuit getting silver because you just lost the race. After the legs stop hurting, we’ll let the moment sink in.”
Earlier, the Kiwis recorded the second fastest time of 4m 22.331s in qualifying, 0.153s ahead of Canada.
Earlier, drama enveloped the opening day when the men’s team pursuit of Regan Gough, Nick Kergozou, Campbell Stewart and Tom Sexton were disqualified from riding off for bronze.
They started an illegal bike, meaning the deciding race against Canada was annulled. An appeal was denied and Wales replaced them.
New Zealand clocked 3m 56.294s, 4.253s behind leaders Australia, who eventually set a world record 3m 49.804s in the final.
Cycling New Zealand high performance director Martin Barras took responsibility for the error.
“There are regulations that pertain to the exact set-up the bike can be configured in, and one of our bikes was found to be outside of those configurations by five or six millimetres in the front cockpit [of the bike],” Barras said.
“It's a failing on the team's part, it's a failing on my part as the director of the programme and I can guarantee no other bike is going to go on to the track with a set-up that hasn’t conformed to the regulations. It was a particularly painful apology to make to all the riders for what just happened.”