Day two of the track cycling World Championships in Poland has seen Great Britain secure their first gold.
Wendy Houvenaghel, Joanna Rowsell and Lizzie Armitstead overcame New Zealand in Pruszkow to successfully defend the team sprint title. Their victory came by a margin of 1.273 seconds, delighting the British support in attendance.
Great Britain’s time of 3.22.720, coming in the absence of Olympic hero Rebecca Romero, proved that they remain at the very top of world track cycling.
The win was all the more sweet for Houvenaghel after she lost out in the individual final on day one of the championships.
Elsewhere, sprint duo Victoria Pendelton and Shanaze Reade narrowly missed out on winning the team sprint title for the third year running. Although they went considerably faster in the final than in qualifying, their efforts to double Great Britain’s gold medal tally proved in vain as they lost out to an Australia team who set a new world record.
The British girls were just 0.231 seconds behind their rivals, but Anna Meares and Kaarle McCulloch’s winning time of 33.149 seconds proved too much for Pendelton and Reade.
The women’s successes came on what was an unproductive day for the men’s team. Attention now turns to day three, where Pendelton will aim to appease her disappointment at missing out on gold when she competes in the individual sprint and keirin.
Michael Thorne, Sportsister
The Women’s Sports Magazine
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