Laura Trott has won a second gold medal of the 2012 UCI Track World Championships with victory in the omnium.
But Jason Kenny and Sir Chris Hoy had to be content with silver and bronze respectively in the men’s sprint in a competition that ended Kenny’s short tenure as world champion, but saw him beat his older and more accomplished teammate in the semi-final.
Trott’s victory brought Great Britain’s fifth gold medal of the 2012 championships, following her own record breaking efforts with the women’s team pursuit squad, victory in identical fashion for their male counterparts, Ben Swift’s scratch race gold, and Victoria Pendleton’s triumph in the women’s sprint.
Trott told the BBC: “Me and my coach have been doing a lot of work, watching back the races that I haven’t done so well in, and it’s paid off. I improved on the points race, which was that extra margin I needed from the London World Cup.”
“I think I’m setting myself up well for London. To come here and win the omnium is massive for me.”
British Cycling is expected to announce its team for London 2012 in June. Trott’s selection after two gold medals in four days seems to be assured. But few will envy the selectors the task of choosing between Sir Chris Hoy and Jason Kenny for the sole position available for the men’s sprint.
The illustrious pair lined up against each other today as Olympic and world champion respectively to contest a semi-final of the men’s sprint.
Kenny recorded back-to-back victories over Hoy, 12 years his senior, and winner of the sprint gold at the London round of the Track World Cup.
Hoy led out the second race, and began his sprint on the final bend of the penultimate lap. But Kenny showed a blistering turn of pace to home in on Hoy’s rear wheel in the final bend of the race and passed him from the outside on the approach to the finish line to record a comfortable victory.
The Kenny-Bauge final set up a rematch between the two men who had contested last year’s world championship final in Apeldoorn. Bauge won in 2011, but Kenny inherited his rainbow jersey after the Frenchman was stripped of the title in January for missing an out of competition drugs test.
Bauge won the first race of today’s final, but in the second race, Kenny attacked from the line, catching his opponent cold and holding on to record what appeared to be an impressive victory. But the race judges ruled that Kenny had impeded his opponent by moving across the sprinter’s line and relegated the Englishman. Their decision meant Bauge had won 2-0 and regained his world title.
Ben Swift added a silver medal to the gold won on Thursday in the men’s scratch race by finishing second behind Australia’s Cameron Meyer in the men’s points race. Swift’s Team Sky teammate, Geraint Thomas, was fifth in the individual pursuit, an event dropped from the Olympic programme after Bradley Wiggins’ victory in Beijing.
