News from the 2002 Australian National Track Cycling Championships

• One Day at a time - national kilo champ Danny Day on his comeback
• Chris Scott breaks world record - an interview with the Queensland Paralympian
• Day one - report and summary
• Day two - report and summary
• Day three - Men's Sprint report
• Day three - Women's Individual Pursuit report
• Day three - Men's Team Pursuit
• Day three - Women's 10km Scratch race report
• Day three - Kelly crashes out
• Meares' sisterly rivalry - the Queensland champions
• Team pursuit - attempts to qualify fall short

Australian Track Cycling Championships

This year's Australian Track Cycling Championships will be held at the Dunc Gray Velodrome from April 17-21. Despite the absence of Olympic gold medallist Brett Aitken, who is taking a year off, the championships will certainly be hotly contested. Many athletes are vying for Commonwealth Games selection, and the Australian titles are an important part of the selection process.

The 1000 metre time trial will see Shane Kelly, a former world champion in the event, race against defending champion Mark Renshaw from Bathurst in country New South Wales. The 19 year old Renshaw, touted as one of cycling's future super stars, won five Australian track titles in 2001 and his recent form in the Qantas Cup Series indicates he’ll be hard to beat. Another former junior world champion making a bid for selection is Ben Kersten, who is back in Australia and training hard after spending a year racing on the road in Holland.

An earlier report on Cyclingnews.com stated that Kelly may not be able to compete due to illness, as he was unable to race last weekend at the Sid Patterson GP in Melbourne, but his manager John Beasly, the Victorian track coach, has confirmed that Kelly will be entering the nationals.

Previous Australian champion Danny Day from Queensland has reportedly been training hard, and would love to add another title to his collection.
April 6, 2002, News

Darryn Hill announces retirement

The 1995 World Sprint Champion Darryn Hill (Australia) has announced his retirement, 19 months after his last competition at the Sydney Olympics. The 27 year old has decided to continue working in his family business, and not return to contest the Commonwealth Games. However, he's not altogether happy about it.

Hill was particularly critical of AIS sprint coach Gary West, saying in an interview with the West Australian newspaper: "He was not willing to listen to the riders, he became so arrogant. When Gary Neiwand, Danny Day and I started training with him in 1995, he used to listen to us. There was a good atmosphere throughout the whole team."

"I then won the world sprint title and he thought he was God's gift to cycling coaching. He began to lack flexibility and it progressively got worse. If he wants to become a great cycling coach he should look at Martin Barras."

Hill also claimed that he was made to ride in the wrong position (3rd wheel) for the Olympic Sprint in Sydney. The extra effort took its toll and he did not qualify well for the individual sprint the next morning. Although he didn't believe that he could have beaten Marty Nothstein, Hill thought he was at least a medal chance.

However, Hill's retirement may have been forced by Cycling Australia, who recently banned him from competition until he could answer charges of threatening an ASDA (Australian Drug Testing Agency) official. According to CA's Graham Fredericks, quoted on ABC radio, Hill "made life difficult for the ASDA official. Avoidance tactics without avoiding, abusive language [but no physical intimidation]. Generally just bad behaviour in terms of officials."

"We took it very seriously," said Fredericks. "We took legal advice on whether charges could be brought under the anti-doping policy. He did eventually submit to a test, and that was negative. We felt it was appropriate to take action then under our disciplinary conduct."

"He's taken the sport and the federation into disrepute."

"If he was to join program again, then he would have permanent ban until he confronts this issue. That's an effective ban world wide."

Hill has fallen foul of officialdom several times in the past. He was fined AU$6000 after being convicted of three counts of assault outside a Perth nightclub in 1995. In 2000, he was fined AU$4000 and given a 12 month probation for assaulting a teammate (Ben Kersten) during a pre-Olympic training camp.

Now he seems to be enjoying his fishing on the Swan River in Perth.
April 6, 2002, News

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