Aggressive Racing, Strong Podiums and Three Irish Medals

Day one of the Dublin Track Cycling International saw Olympic Champion Elinor Barker impress in the Women’s Omnium, the Danish Team dominate the Men’s Omnium, and Ireland grab three medals in the Men’s and Women’s Sprint events.

With a full schedule of racing in Dublin’s Sundrive Velodrome, international track stars entertained with aggressive racing all day in the UCI Class 1 event that runs from the 1^st-2^nd July.

The Sprint featured Irish riders on the podium, with Robyn Stewart, the National Record holder for 200m, securing silver behind Laurine Van Riessen of the Dutch National Track Sprint Team. Autumn Collins (Torelli) rounded off the podium with a bronze medal.

Eamonn Byrne was a popular bronze medal winner in the Men’s Sprint, having learnt his trade with the local Sundrive Track Team. The gold medal went to Dutch man Roy Van Den Berg, who set a course fastest time for 200m in the qualifying round with a time of 10.69 seconds. David Ceci (Cycling Team Fruili ASD) won the silver medal.

In the Women’s Omnium all eyes were on Elinor Barker, the GB rider who won gold in the Team Pursuit at the Rio Olympics, and the Welsh rider who competes for Matrix Fitness Pro Cycling Team didn’t disappoint, with consistent performances across the four races.

Trine Schmidt from the Danish National Team was second with Megan Barker winning bronze in an exciting finish that wasn’t secured until her final sprint in the Points Race, with the same points as but a higher finish position than Andrea Waldis (Belgium). Lydia Boylan (Team WNT) was the highest place Irish finisher, with a 7^th place.

The Men’s Omnium was dominated by the Danish, with Niklas Larson winning gold ahead of team mate Frederik Rodenberg Madsen. Ethan Hayter (100% Me) rounded off the medal table in an event that saw Irish riders Fintan Ryan and Felix English (TeamProject.ie) finish in 14^th and 15^th place respectively.

Tomorrow will see the focus switch to the individual events, with Scratch, Points and Keirin Race points up for grabs, as well as in the Individual Pursuit – the points gained in these UCI track events count towards World Cup qualification so are crucial events on the track cycling calendar.

Dublin City Sport & Wellbeing Partnership is once again the funding partner of the Dublin Track Cycling International, and has been a valuable support of track cycling over the past number of years, with this event entering its fifth year.

Entry is free for spectators, with racing taking place all day on both Saturday 1^st and Sunday 2^nd July. The full racing programme can be seen on www.trackcycling.ie.