Michael Hepburn on track for title defence

OLYMPIC silver medallist Michael Hepburn said a decision to remain on the track until this month's world championships helped him stay motivated over summer.

Michael Hepburn

OLYMPIC silver medallist Michael Hepburn said a decision to remain on the track until this month's world championships helped him stay motivated over summer.

Hepburn has delayed the start to his European road season with Orica-GreenEDGE so he can defend his rainbow jersey in the individual pursuit in Belarus.

He initially planned to follow two of his London Olympics teammates - Jack Bobridge and Rohan Dennis - in moving to the road full-time at the start of 2013.

But with the track world titles moved forward to February he decided it would be an ideal way to launch him into his first full road season, which starts in Belgium and Turkey and moves to the Tour of California in May.

"After the Olympics I thought I'd sit away from the track for a while," Hepburn said.

"Then I started thinking when I had my road program planned out that the worlds would fit in quite well."

Last week the 21-year-old showed his track legs were still there when he won the 4km individual pursuit title at the national titles in Sydney.

Hepburn clocked 4mins 15secs which he likened to his scorching 4:13 ride to win the world championship in Melbourne last year.

"I was surprised because the last few months has been about building a solid base on the road for the season to come," he said.

Hepburn has opted out of the teams pursuit at the world championships.

"Essentially I was coming off no track training.nte

"With individual pursuit training you can still focus on the road, where as with teams pursuit training in the past it's always taken about a month to get back to that level because the training is so specific."

Hepburn has not put his hand up to ride the teams pursuit at the world championships, saying Australia has a "good young group of guys" ready to take the nation forward in track cycling's blue riband event.

After the Belarus world titles from February 20-24, Hepburn will open his road season in Belgium before heading to Turkey and riding the Tour of California in May.

HEPBURN'S Orica-GreenEDGE teammate Leigh Howard yesterday won the second race of the Challenge Mallorca series in Spain when he out-sprinted Tyler Farrar and Jose Joaquin Rojas.