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PreviewThe 2002 National Track Cycling Championships will be staged over five days on Sydney's Olympic Velodrome from Wednesday 17- Sunday 21 April 2002. The five days of racing will be the final selection trials for the forthcoming Commonwealth Games with all of our successful athletes from the Sydney Olympic Games clashing with many of the rising stars that have won World Junior Track Championships. The current World Keirin Champion and one of the fastest sprinters in the World Ryan Bayley of Western Australia will be pitted against Olympic bronze medallist and local star Sean Eadie in the sprint and keirin events. Bayley, a former World Junior sprint champion, was in great form during the Qantas Cup and virtually unbeatable but Eadie, a former National champion will be in his best form and is keen to ensure selection for the Commonwealth Games team. The long awaited clash between Shane Kelly, the Olympic bronze medallist and triple world champion and Ben Kersten, the rider denied Olympic selection after defeating Kelly in the National titles in 2000, will be on the very first night. Kersten, a triple world junior champion from Wollongong, after having won two gold medals and a silver in the National titles in the lead up to the Sydney Games, was disillusioned with the sport and headed to Holland in 2001, ridding himself of national selection squabbles. Kersten has now returned to Australian cycling but will also be challenged by defending National kilometre champion Mark Renshaw. Renshaw, only 19 years of age is a cycling legend having also won three World titles and collected six medals at the last National titles, winning four of the events. The major clashes will not just be with the men but the women with Michelle Ferris, the Olympic Games silver medallist in both Sydney and Atlanta returning to top class racing in her bid to wrestle the sprint and time trial crown from the defending National champion Kerrie Meares of Rockhampton. Meares will also have strong opposition from her own sister, Anna Meares who followed her in winning the World Junior title last year in the 500 metre time trial as well as Kristine Bayley, the Western Australia flyer. However the big shaker and mover in women cycling is Rochelle Gilmore, the best cycling talent in Australia following her two seconds in the World Cup road behind Petra Rossner, the Olympic champion along with the glittering performances as best female rider of the Qantas Cup series.
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