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Photo ©: Schaaf

2008 UCI Track Cycling World Championships - CM

Great Britain, March 26-30, 2008

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Day 4 - March 29: Men's keirin

Two Golds for Hoy; Nine for Great Britain

By Ben Atkins and Shane Stokes in Manchester

Keirin winners: Britain's Chris Hoy on the Keirin podium,
Photo ©: Nick Rosenthal
(Click for larger image)

Great Britain's Chris Hoy has sensationally retained his Keirin title and taken his second rainbow jersey at this year's World Championships. His second gold also puts the Great Britain total at nine with a day's events still to come.

Like the majority of Hoy's victories in this event he took the front as the derny bike pulled off and relied on the endurance he developed in his days as a Kilometre specialist to maintain his speed where his opponents are unable.

"I had to get the front and try and control it," he said after his victory. "Teun [Mulder] took the motorbike and that was fine for me because I just had one person to overtake. I just didn't want to get stuck in the back. I was wary of Arnaud [Tournant] and the other riders towards the back, and when the bike swung off I just wanted to go to the front and try and pick up the pace and control it."

If anything, this race was slightly less of a dominant performance than usual, after a hard few days competing for medals in the Sprint and Team Sprint events. "My legs were very tired," he continued, "and it was a long way – the last lap felt pretty hard and I was just really glad to get across the line first." In fact he finished, not his usual length or two clear, but not much more than a wheel ahead of Teun Mulder of the Netherlands and Christos Volikakis of Greece.

The Derny leads the Keirin riders around
Photo ©: Nick Rosenthal
(Click for larger image)

"To win two golds and a silver is way beyond what I hoped at the start of the week," the Scotsman said of his phenomenal few days. "The sprint is a huge surprise, and while I knew the Keirin was possible, I never expected to win because it is a very unpredictable event."

Looking forward to Beijing, Hoy noted that "Everybody, the other teams, the other nations are going to raise their game again so there was no complacency, no cockiness or overconfidence. But you will gain a lot of confidence for the Olympics from the results that we [the Great Britain team] have achieved here."

"Chris is – at this moment – the best rider, the best sprinter, and he's the best [on paper] for Beijing." Silver medallist Teun Mulder told Cyclingnews. "For me and the Dutch team, we got a bronze medal, so it was a good beginning for us. The Sprint for me was not so good, and then I got second in the Keirin, so it's a good motivation for the next couple of months to train harder and try to beat Chris."

Hoy marches on through semi-finals

By Ben Atkins and Shane Stokes in Manchester, England

Great Britain's Chris Hoy won the first of two keirin semi-finals in his usual dominant fashion. He took the front with almost three laps to go and none of his rivals were able to match his speed and stamina over that distance. Greece's Christos Volikakis and Teun Mulder of the Netherlands came in second and third to qualify for the final.

The second semi-final took on a similar appearance as Hoy's Great Britain team-mate Matthew Campton hit the front on the penultimate lap. Despite the best efforts of Frenchman Arnaud Tournant and a fast finishing Toshiaki Fushimi of Japan, no one was able to get past him.

First round: High drama in the Pace-Race

In the first heat, defending champion and World Cup winner Chris Hoy (Great Britain) took the front with two laps to go in his usual style and used his kilometre experience to stay clear. The next saw a bit more drama when the Netherlands' Theo Bos swerved early on to avoid the back wheel of Frenchman Arnaud Tournant and nearly took out Malaysia's Azizulhasni Awang. Awang stayed upright and managed to come around to win.

The third heat was lead out early by Great Britain's Ross Edgar from three laps out. Despite pressure from the other riders he managed to hold his lead to the line. The final heat though was far more controversial as a finishing straight switch from France's Mickael Bourgain took out the front wheel of Malaysian Josiah Ng Onn Lam. Ng Onn Lam hit the track hard at speed and also took out José Antonio Escuredo Raimondez of Spain and they crossed the line on their backs. Bourgain was disqualified and will not be able to ride in the repecharges. The win was taken by Christos Vakakis of Greece after he overhauled an early move from Great Britain's Matthew Crampton.

The repecharge races proved as exciting as the initial heats. Ng Onn Lam went early in the first – seemingly recovered from his high - speed crash – but was caught before the line by the rest led by the Netherlands' Teun Mulder. Tournant brought all his years of experience to bear in manoeuvring the rest of the riders to where he wanted them before taking the front with two laps to go. Carsten Bergemann took the front form the start and stayed there to take the next race, while Russian Segey Ruban managed to get a gap on the rest in the final race but faded spectacularly as Australain Ryan Bayley led the rest past.

Results

First round

Heat 1
1 Chris Hoy (Great Britain)                  
2 Toshiaki Fushimi (Japan)                   
3 Teun Mulder (Netherlands)                  
4 Sergey Ruban (Russian Federation)          
5 Andriy Vynokurov (Ukraine)                 
6 Hodei Mazquiaran Uria (Spain)              
7 Athanasios Mantzouranis (Greece)           
 
Heat 2
1 Azizulhasni Awang (Malaysia)               
2 Shane Perkins (Australia)                  
3 Arnaud Tournant (France)                   
4 Theo Bos (Netherlands)                     
5 Ricardo Lynch (Jamaica)                    
6 Sergey Borisov (Russian Federation)        
7 Filip Ptacnik (Czech Republic)             
 
Heat 3
1 Ross Edgar (Great Britain)                 
2 Shane John Kelly (Australia)               
3 Carsten Bergemann (Germany)                
4 Kévin Sireau (France)                      
5 Denis Spicka (Czech Republic)              
6 Roberto Chiappa (Italy)                    
7 Mohd Rizal Tisin (Malaysia)                
 
Heat 4
1 Christos Volikakis (Greece)                
2 Matthew Crampton (Great Britain)           
3 Ryan Bayley (Australia)                    
4 Josiah Ng Onn Lam (Malaysia)               
5 José Antonio Escuredo Raimondez (Spain)    
6 Stefan Nimke (Germany)    

First round repecharge                 
 
Heat 1
1 Teun Mulder (Netherlands)                  
2 Sergey Borisov (Russian Federation)        
3 Josiah Ng Onn Lam (Malaysia)               
4 Denis Spicka (Czech Republic)              
 
Heat 2
1 Arnaud Tournant (France)                   
2 Ricardo Lynch (Jamaica)                    
3 Athanasios Mantzouranis (Greece)           
4 Kévin Sireau (France)                      
5 Hodei Mazquiaran Uria (Spain)              
 
Heat 3
1 Carsten Bergemann (Germany)                
2 Theo Bos (Netherlands)                     
3 Andriy Vynokurov (Ukraine)                 
4 Stefan Nimke (Germany)                     
5 Mohd Rizal Tisin (Malaysia)                
 
Heat 4
1 Ryan Bayley (Australia)                    
2 Filip Ptacnik (Czech Republic)             
3 José Antonio Escuredo Raimondez (Spain)    
4 Roberto Chiappa (Italy)                    
5 Sergey Ruban (Russian Federation) 

Round two

Heat 1
1 Chris Hoy (Great Britain)                   
2 Christos Volikakis (Greece)                 
3 Teun Mulder (Netherlands)                   
4 Shane John Kelly (Australia)                
5 Shane Perkins (Australia)                   
6 Ryan Bayley (Australia)                     
 
Heat 2
1 Matthew Crampton (Great Britain)            
2 Arnaud Tournant (France)                    
3 Toshiaki Fushimi (Japan)                    
4 Ross Edgar (Great Britain)                  
5 Carsten Bergemann (Germany)                 
6 Azizulhasni Awang (Malaysia)                
 
Finals

1 Chris Hoy (Great Britain)                   
2 Teun Mulder (Netherlands)                   
3 Christos Volikakis (Greece)                 
4 Arnaud Tournant (France)                    
5 Toshiaki Fushimi (Japan)                    
6 Matthew Crampton (Great Britain)            
7 Shane John Kelly (Australia)                
8 Ross Edgar (Great Britain)                  
9 Ryan Bayley (Australia)                     
10 Carsten Bergemann (Germany)                
11 Shane Perkins (Australia)                  
12 Azizulhasni Awang (Malaysia)               
13 Filip Ptacnik (Czech Republic)             
13 Theo Bos (Netherlands)                     
13 Sergey Borisov (Russian Federation)        
13 Ricardo Lynch (Jamaica)                    
17 José Antonio Escuredo Raimondez (Spain)    
17 Athanasios Mantzouranis (Greece)           
17 Josiah Ng Onn Lam (Malaysia)               
17 Andriy Vynokurov (Ukraine)                 
21 Denis Spicka (Czech Republic)              
21 Kévin Sireau (France)                      
21 Stefan Nimke (Germany)                     
21 Roberto Chiappa (Italy)                    
25 Hodei Mazquiaran Uria (Spain)              
25 Mohd Rizal Tisin (Malaysia)                
25 Sergey Ruban (Russian Federation)