Commonwealth Games 2018: Agony to ecstasy as wheels finally turn for Matthew Glaetzer

Cycling star forced to wait more than 24 torturous hours to make amends for the sprint loss he called nightmarish and shattering.

Matt Glaetzer celebrates a gold medal and Games record time in the Men's 1000m Time Trial.

Matthew Glaetzer was forced to wait more than 24 torturous hours to make amends for the sprint loss he called nightmarish, devastating, shattering, a monumental stuff-up, a gutting tactical mistake and proof of the ridiculousness of trying to coast through against unknown yet unpredictable opponents at the Commonwealth Games.

“I won’t leave anything in the tank,” the world sprint champion promised ahead of his return to the Anna Meares Velodrome for the time trial.

He was coming off the disappointment of a bronze medal in the team sprint, the high of winning the rough-house keirin and the shock of losing the individual sprint. Again he was the favourite. Again he had plenty to win, and quite a bit to lose. He won.

Cycling can come down to who wants it the most. Who can’t ride a bike, eh? Techniques are similar. It can come down to who’s trained the most fiercely and efficiently in the build-up. Who’s put the most power in their legs. Who’s the most willing to ignore the dreaded lactic acid and burning thighs.

“A lot of it is relief, to be honest. It was a big day today, to bounce back after a day yesterday that was shattering for me,” he said last night. “I had to get one up for Australia. I owed them one after yesterday.

“This stretched me, this week. A bit of a rollercoaster. It’s hard dealing with that emotional wave but it’s good for me. I’m going to be more of a weapon after this.”

Glaetzer in action at the Anna Meares Velodrome.

Glaetzer is hugged by supporters.

The time trial spared Glaetzer the tactical decisions that mucked him up in the cat-and-mouse sprint. The time trial put him against the clock, and the clock alone. He beat it and everyone else with the sort of gusto that stemmed from a ruinously casual performance the previous evening.

New Zealand’s Ed Dawkins is a motorbike enthusiast and formidable physical presence. He posted a time that he could barely have beaten on his Harley-Davidson. Known as The Big Dawk, he recorded a Commonwealth record of 59.928sec that would take some beating. Each entrant had one shot at four laps. One kilometre at full speed. Glaetzer had the nerve-racking task of watching all 23 of his competitors before he had his turn. At least he would know what he had to beat.

Australia’s Pat Constable tired on the final lap and finished 1.5 seconds behind The Big Dawk. Nicholas Yallouris was more than two seconds behind The Big Dawk. And then there was one. The last man on the track. Glaetzer put on his shoes while using the same seat in which he had cried the day before. He wiped away sweat instead of tears.

Glaetzer sat through the minute from hell — the wait for the clock to tick down while the rider sits on the starting line — with the inconvenience of having to do it twice because of a technical glitch. There would be no coasting here. He clocked 59.34 under the most extraordinary pressure. Last night brought down the curtain on the track cycling at the Annadrome. What a show it has been. Australia topped the gold medal tally in a massive pre-Tokyo boost after the disasters of Rio.