The host country for the second round collected two silver medals and one bronze on the second day of the competition in Cambridge.

This was really a clash of the titans! However, we weren’t on the edge of a rugby pitch, but in the Cambridge Avantidrome for the joust between New Zealand and Australia in the final of the Team pursuit. In spite of strong support from their crowd, the local athletes were defeated by their rivals. Australia, with Glenn O’Shea, Jack Bobridge, Michael Hepburn and Alexander Edmondson, won in 3’53’’010, ahead of the New Zealanders, who finished in 3’57’’612.

The Australians knew very well that the race was by no means a formality. “They (Alex Frame, Pieter Bulling, Regan Gough and Cameron Karwowski), were current World Champions, and were in front of their home crowd! We knew that we could go fast, and are delighted to have established a new Australian record in the Team pursuit. I don’t think we could have done better, and it’s an excellent result to go to Rio with.” Germany (4’02’’517) took third place, in front of the Netherlands (4’02’’913).

General rankings
Australia has taken the lead in the UCI Track World Cup Team pursuit with 540 points, ahead of Switzerland (450 points) and Germany (436 points).

Men’s Team sprint: Germany dominates the event
After Cali, Germany again confirmed its position as the fastest country in Team sprint. Max Niederlag, Joachim Eilers and René Enders won in 43’’130 in front of New Zealand (43’’419). “We had won the qualifier (43’’151), and our goal was to go even faster today – and we succeeded! I think that we still have work to do before the World Championships and the Olympic Games, but we’re on the right track,” remarked Enders. In the race for the last step on the podium, the Australians of Jayco AIS (43’’733) beat Great Britain.

General rankings
Unbeaten since the start of the season, Germany is therefore leader in the general rankings with 450 points, ahead of the Netherlands and Great Britain (327 points).

Men’s keirin: Eilers does the double!
Having already won in Cali, Joachim Eilers repeated his exploit on the track at Cambridge. The German, who came in ahead of his countryman Maximilian Levy (Team Erdgas 2012), enthused: “It was really an incredible race! Everyone wanted to achieve success, but I managed to win once again.” Only 0’’002 separated the two riders, with the American Matthew Baranoski coming in third.

General rankings
As we might expect then, Eilers leads the rankings with 300 points, while his rivals Baranoski (225 points) and Levy (189 points) follow at a respectable distance.

Men’s scratch: Stewart comes up trumps!
Great Britain continues to perform well in the endurance events. In Cambridge, Mark Stewart was the fastest in the scratch event. The Englishman came in in front of the Colombian Brayan Stiven Sanchez, and the two men succeeded in getting one lap ahead of the rest of the pack. The Ukrainian Roman Gladysh finished in third place.

Women’s sprint: Kristina Vogel shows who’s boss!
World champion in the discipline, Kristina Vogel continues to perform strongly in anticipation of the World Championships in London and the Olympic Games. The German rider from the Team Erdgas 2012 triumphed over two rounds against the Australian from Team Jayco AIS, Stephanie Morton. “Last month in Cali, it was really difficult for me. Wearing the World Champion’s jersey often generates increased pressure. But here, I was relaxed, and it worked,” she analysed. In contrast, the Lithuanian rider Simona Krupeckaite had to rely on a deciding heat to triumph over the Chinese rider Shuang Guo (Giant-Max Success Sports Pro Cycling).

General rankings
This victory enabled Kristina Vogel to move to the top of the World Cup table with 263 points. The Chinese riders Shuang Guo (248 points) and Tianshi Zhong (240 points) follow in that order.

Women’s Team pursuit: Australia wins by a whisker!
What a final in the Women’s Team pursuit! In the Cambridge Avantidrome, Australia – with Ashlee Ankudinoff, Georgia Baker, Amy Cure and Isabella King – won in 4’18’’213, with the Canadians taking second place in 4’18’’267! Before going up onto the podium, Cure remarked: “It was really tight, though we knew that it would be difficult. But the logic of the rankings was perfectly respected and it was great to see number 1 displayed against our team’s name at the end of the race.” New Zealand (4’23’’011) finished in third place, ahead of the United States (4’29’’783).

General rankings
Canada, already first in the general rankings in 2014, remains on top with 570 points. Australia is second with 496 points, along with the USA.

Team sprint: Another Chinese win
Two rounds and as many wins for the Chinese pair Jinjie Gong and Tianshi Zhong. The two girls – trained by the retired sprinter Benoît Vétu – won in 32’’311 and are now in front of the Australians from the Team Jayco AIS, Kaarle Mcculloch and Stephanie Morton (32’’588). The Netherlands, with Laurine Van Riessen and Elis Ligtlee, had the edge over the German riders Miriam Welte and Emma Hinze.

General rankings
China leads with 300 points, in front of the Team Jayco AIS (270) and Germany (226 points).

The final round of the UCI Track World Cup will take place in Hong Kong in 2016 (16th to 17th January).

These trials have been a great success in New Zealand. The Prime Minister John Key honoured both the athletes and organisers by his presence. He expressed his interest for track cycling, and discussed with the UCI representatives the possibilities of the future involvement of his country.

The competition continues tomorrow and you can follow the events “live” on tv.uci.ch.