Irish riders chase Olympic Points at Hong Kong World Cup
Irish riders are entering a critical period for Olympic qualification with a series of Track World Cup events in Hong Kong, New Zealand and Australia in the coming months.
The elite track cycling team have embarked on their journey around the southern hemisphere with the first stop being the Hong Kong World Cup. Ireland will be represented by five riders racing in the Men’s Madison, Women’s Madison and Women’s Omnium events.
There are 16 quota team places available for the men’s and women’s Madison at the 2020 Olympic Games, 8 of which are automatically given to the top 8 qualifying Team Pursuit teams, with the final 8 spots being decided by the Madison Olympic rankings.
Ireland’s men’s team goes into the Hong Kong
World Cup ranked 18th, two places outside of the top 16 ranking
required. The Women’s team are currently sitting in 10th in the Madison Olympic rankings and inside the qualification quota.
The best three results of the six Track Cycling World Cups will be taken into consideration in addition to the UCI Elite Track Cycling World Championships which take place in February and offer extra points. With the qualification window open until the end of March 2020 it is still all to play for, but the Irish team will be looking to get some good points on the board.
Men’s Madison: Mark Downey, Felix English. Women’s Madison: Lydia Boylan, Lydia Gurley. Women’s Omnium: Emily Kay.
Live timing and results HERE
Olympic Qualification Rankings HERE
Madison
Teams of two riders take part in this relay race contested by means of intermediary sprints (every 10 laps). While one team member races, the other slows down to take a rest before being thrown back into the action with a hand sling from his/her teammate. The classification is calculated according to the number of points won. As with the points race, any team that gains a lap on the main bunch is awarded 20 points, while any team that is lapped by the bunch has 20 points deducted. Points awarded in the last sprint after the full distance are doubled (10 points, 6 points, 4 points, 2 points).
Omnium
Formerly made up of 6 events disputed over 2 consecutive days, this year the Omnium will comprise four endurance events raced on the same day: Scratch race, tempo race, elimination and points race. Riders must show consistency throughout the day to have a chance of topping the final classification.
The tempo race is new to the Omnium, and its rules are similar to those of the points race. After the first five laps, intermediate sprints occur every lap with one point awarded to the first rider. Riders also gain points for lapping the main bunch, while riders caught by the main peloton must leave the track and lose all their points.