|
Men's IP |
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
World Track Championships - CM
Copenhagen, Denmark, September 25 - 29, 2002
Event program and results Disabled IP Men's IP Women's IP
Men's Individual Pursuit
McGee and Roberts fastest qualifiers
 |
In a repeat of last month's Commonwealth Games in Manchester, Australians Brad McGee and Luke Roberts qualified as the two fastest riders in the men's 4000m individual pursuit. The positions were reversed from Manchester, with McGee (4.19.290) qualifying ahead of Roberts (4.21.131), with McGee signalling himself as the clear favourite for this event. In third place was Ukrainian Volodymyr Dyudya in 4.22.469, while Germany's Jens Lehmann rode a 4.23.578. Defending champion Oleksandr Symonenko was eliminated, as only the first eight riders qualified.
McGee, who used a 51x13 in qualifying, will face Sebastian Siedler (Ger) in the first round later today, while Roberts will be up against 7th placed qualifier Sergi Escobar (Spa). The finals will be held this evening.
Finals
 |
Brad McGee has won an all-Australian final in the men's IP, beating team-mate Luke Roberts by over seven seconds. Jens Lehmann of Germany took the bronze ahead of Volodymyr Dyudya of the Ukraine.
McGee dominated the event, posting the fastest qualifying time and catching Sebastian Siedler (Ger) while recording the first round's fastest time to carve himself a clear path into the final. This is his third pursuit rainbow jersey, adding to the ones he won in 1993 and 1994.
"I was confident of my ability but I wasn't sure if I'd managed to maintain my form since Manchester," said McGee.
"After Manchester I was really keen to come here but my team director (Marc Madiot) and I decided not to do specific training for it but to continue with my usual end of road season racing plan," said McGee. "In fact I only got on the track for about an hour when I went to the Australian pre-worlds training camp in Germany a couple of weeks ago and that was the day after I raced the 280km Paris-Brussels race."
McGee's pursuit win came after a disappointing ride in the weekend's GP des Nations time trial. "I just had to say to put it behind me and pretend it never happened and focus on this day because I wanted to have sensational form and really blitz it."
McGee attributes this success to a simple factor: experience. "When I was a youngster I used to tear around and try and win everything and worry about everything but now I go into big races ready to win and that's a big thing for other young riders to realise," he said. "If you put in the time and effort you can just wait for the success to come to you."
 |
Second-placed Luke Roberts was overjoyed to finally pick up a medal after years of 'nearly man' status. "I was really disappointed in Manchester because I qualified fastest and then missed out on a placing," said Roberts. "In fact I had even considered not starting the individual event so I could concentrate on the teams pursuit but I'm really happy I changed my mind."
The Australian team was jubilant when McGee's and Roberts' first round placings meant that the final would be all-Australian affair. "You know it was sort of like lining up for the Australian Titles having Luke on the other side of the track from me," joked McGee whose wife, Sharni, and baby daughter Tahlia were in the stands to cheer him on. "It also gave me a boost because I knew I had beaten him before and he did too but I hope this result does big things for him because he has great potential and deserves to be recognized."
Photography
Images by Mike Gladu/www.velodrome.com
- Brad McGee (Aus) was today's fastest qualifier
- Luke Roberts (Aus) rode the second best time of 4'21.131
- Volodymyr Dyudya (Ukr) qualified third
- Jens Lehmann (Ger) rides during qualifying
- Bradley Wiggins (GBr) rode a good time of 4'24.378
- Jerome Neuville (Fra) France's best qualifier
- Sergi Escobar Roure (Spa) qualified in sixth place
- Sebastian Siedler (Ger) was the last rider to qualify in the top 8
- Mike Tillman (USA) Missed out on the qualification cut
Images by AFP
- Australian cyclist Brad McGee celebrates after winning the final of the men's individual pursuit
- Australian cyclists Brad McGee and Luke Roberts pose with their medals after the men's individual pursuit
- Brad McGee is congratulated by his wife Sharni and baby Tahlia
- McGee and Roberts celebrate their 1-2 win in the Pursuit
Images by Mike Gladu/www.velodrome.com
- Brad McGee before start
- McGee at full flight
- Jens Lehmann in the Bronze medal ride
- Luke Roberts rides into silver
- McGee celebrates his win
- McGee from another angle
- McGee continues his celebration
- Mens Pursuit Podium - Roberts, McGee, Lehmann
Results
Qualification 1 Bradley McGee (Aus) 4.19.290 (55.536 km/h) 2 Luke Roberts (Aus) 4.21.131 3 Volodymyr Dyudya (Ukr) 4.22.469 4 Jens Lehmann (Ger) 4.23.578 5 Bradley Wiggins (GBr) 4.24.378 6 Jérôme Neuville (Fra) 4.24.705 7 Sergi Escobar Roure (Spa) 4.25.656 8 Sebastian Siedler (Ger) 4.26.379 9 Philippe Gaumont (Fra) 4.27.067 10 Alexandre Symonenko (Ukr) 4.27.654 11 Lyubomyr Polatayko (Ukr) 4.27.739 12 Viktor Rapinski (Blr) 4.29.740 13 Alexei Markov (Rus) 4.30.244 14 Alexander Gonzalez (Col) 4.30.766 15 Jens Mouris (Ned) 4.30.891 16 Maicol Valgiusti (Ita) 4.32.752 17 Michael Tillman (USA) 4.33.955 18 Carlos Castano (Spa) 4.34.372 19 Edgardo Simon (Arg) 4.41.570 20 Przemyslaw Tokarski (Pol) 4.42.200 21 Sergejus Apionkinas (Ltu) 4.42.580 22 Basileios Gianniosis (Gre) 4.42.679 Round 1 Fastest two to final, next fastest to bronze medal final 1 Brad McGee (Aus) 4.19.297 (55.53 km/h) 2 Luke Roberts (Aus) 4.20.393 3 Volodymyr Dyudya (Ukr) 4.21.852 4 Jens Lehmann (Ger) 4.22.344 5 Bradley Wiggins (GBR) 4.22.883 6 Sergi Escobar (Spa) 4.26.634 7 Jérôme Neuville (Fra) 4.30.342 8 Sebastian Siedler (Ger) Caught Final 1 Brad McGee (Aus) 4.17.875 (55.841 km/h) 2 Luke Roberts (Aus) 4.24.925 3 Jens Lehmann (Ger)
