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Canadian team pursuit women qualify with fourth best time in Rio

Canada to face world record holder Great Britain on Saturday

August 11, 2016
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Canada, this year’s UCI track cycling World Cup champion in women’s team pursuit, qualified with the fourth fastest time in the Rio Olympic Velodrome on Thursday. The first day on the boards produced both Olympic and world records.

The day began with the British men setting the Olympic record in team sprint qualifying. However, Philip Hindes, Jason Kenny and Callum Skinner’s 42.562 stood for only just over an hour before New Zealand broke it in Round 1 with 42.535.

Later, the Brits would beat the Kiwis for the first gold medal in the velodrome, once more beating the OR with 42.440. France took the bronze.

In the women’s team pursuit, another British squad broke the world record with 4:13.260. The world champions, the U.S.A. had the second fastest time. The Australians, who had a bad crash in training earlier in the week, was third best. Allison Beveridge, Jasmin Glaesser, Laura Brown and Georgia Simmerling posted 4:19.599.


In Saturday’s first round there will be four heats, with U.S.A. vs Australia in Heat 3 and Canada vs Great Britain in Heat 4. The winners of Heats 3 and 4 will contest for the gold and silver, while the two next fastest times out of all the other six teams will vie for the bronze.

In the men’s team pursuit qualifying, Sir Bradley Wiggins led Great Britain’s quartet to the best time, the second fastest time ever recorded. Round 1 is Friday.