Denmark puts cycling world on notice by smashing Australia’s team pursuit world record ahead of 2020 Games
Denmark has stunned world cycling by obliterating Australia’s team pursuit world record in Berlin overnight. It sends a terrifying message to rivals ahead of the Tokyo Olympics.
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Denmark has sent a shockwave through international cycling and put Australia on notice by taking four seconds off its team pursuit world record just months from the Tokyo Olympics.
The Danes obliterated Australia's world record of 3mins 48 secs in three consecutive rides to claim the world championship in Berlin in the time of 3:44.672secs.
In a major wake-up call for Cycling Australia, both its men’s and women’s team pursuit squads went into the world titles as the defending champions and missed the medals.
The men – led by Leigh Howard, Alex Porter, Sam Welsford and Luke Plapp – finished fourth, as did the women’s team of Ashlee Ankudinoff, Georgia Baker, Annette Edmondson and Maeve Plouffe.
The men’s team was missing its captain, Kelland O’Brien, after he broke his collarbone during the Tour Down Under in January and was unable to recover in time.
The Denmark team comprised Lasse Norman Hansen, Julius Johansen, Frederik Rodenberg Madsen and Rasmus Pedersen.
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“I have absolute faith we can (match Denmark),” Howard said.
“I’ve seen what we’re capable of doing in training with our full squad.
“We’ve had a tough year – our coach Tim Decker has had a really tough year, we’re a tight unit (and) that affects us all.
“But we’ll all be back together next month in Adelaide, and we have five solid months of preparation and training for the Olympics coming up.
“So, it hurts, but it’s the extra fire in the belly.
“That’s all we can do.
“We can look forward and work on the areas we know we need to.
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“To be honest, we’re all hurting – Kell (O’Brien) is probably one of the most passionate bike riders you can ever meet.
“I know he’s doing it tough back home and we’re doing it tough without him.”
Howard was also quick to highlight the performance of 19-year-old debutant Plapp, who shone across all three rounds.
“We have an incredible young guy in Luke Plapp, who has stepped up to the mark. He’s incredible, and I’m looking forward to seeing his future,” he said.
Australia had better results in the team sprint events with both men’s and women’s teams medalling.
Nathan Hart, Matthew Richardson and debutant Tom Cornish combined to win bronze in the men’s team sprint while Kaarle McCulloch and Stephanie Morton claimed silver in the women’s.
reece.homfray@news.com.au
Originally published as Denmark puts cycling world on notice by smashing Australia’s team pursuit world record ahead of 2020 Games