Canada earns silver and bronze on Day 2 of Minsk track World Cup

Team Canada won two medals on Saturday’s second day of competition at the Minsk, Belarus, track cycling World Cup: a silver in the men’s keirin and a bronze in the women’s team pursuit. Cycling Canada sent a young, NextGen-based squad to the final World Cup of the season and it delivered.

Former junior men’s 1000 metre time trial world champion Stefan Ritter won a silver in the men’s keirin. He started off with fifth place in Heat 3 of qualifying, which put in the repechage round. There he was tops in the first heat. This got him into the second round where once more he was the fastest in his heat. In the final the Edmontonian missed out on gold to Dutchman Matthijs Buchli, who was the winner in the first two rounds of the World Cup. Brit Oliva Lewis was third.

It was Ritter’s first ever World Cup keirin and his first step onto the podium.

Successful day @UCI_Track in Minsk today with a bronze medal for @Lewis_Oliva ?? pic.twitter.com/8rxd6y4rnm

— Shelley Jones (@shellj85) January 20, 2018

After posting the third fastest time in Friday’s qualifying round, Canada’s women’s team pursuit squad was matched up with Italy in the second round. Although the Italians beat the Canadians, Erin Attwell, Maggie Coles-Lyster, Devaney Collier and Laurie Jussaume once more set the third fastest time, qualifying the young quartet for the bronze medal match up with France.

Canada and France were neck and neck after 2000-metres but France got into trouble and did not finish. It was Canada’s third women’s team pursuit medal of the season after silver in Pruszków, Poland, and gold in Milton.

? medal for the Women’s Team Pursuit NextGen squad ?‍?‍?‍? Awesome performance at their very first World Cup!! pic.twitter.com/Upp6jGwptY

— Cycling Canada (@CyclingCanada) January 20, 2018

Collier had double duty on Saturday as she contested the women’s omnium. Collier was quite consistent as she took 14th in the scratch and 12th in the tempo race, a variation on the points race. Her best placing was in the elimination race where she earned 10th spot. Her showing in the points race gave her 14th overall.

Sunday’s final day of competition includes Ritter in the men’s individual sprint and Coles-Lyster and Jussaume teaming up in the madison.