Canada’s Kelsey Mitchell sprints to bronze medal at Hong Kong World Cup
Pedal 2 the Medal rider was second fastest in qualifying
Canada earned its first 2019-2020 UCI World Cup medal on Saturday as Pedal 2 the Medal’s Kelsey Mitchell sprinted to bronze against Ukraine’s Olena Starikova. Team Canada’s Hugo Barrette took eighth in the keirin while Derek Gee placed 15th in the omnium.
The day started out with a bang for Canada as Mitchell qualified with the second fastest time in the flying 250-metres. The fastest time belonged to hometown hero Wai Sze Lee, who would eventually take the gold. Canada’s other entrant, Lauriane Genest, placed 23rd and also advanced but couldn’t get past Dutch rider Laurine van Riessen in the 1/16 finals.
In the 1/8 finals Mitchell dispatched Japan’s Riyu Ohta before beating the Netherlands’ Shanne Braspennincx in the quarters. Although Mitchell was the fastest in the first semifinal race with German Emma Hinze, Hinze advanced to the final by winning the next two. It took Mitchell three races against Starikova to earn the bronze.
Kelsey Mitchell makes her way to the Sprint semi finals at her second ever World Cup after qualifying with the 2⃣ fastest time ?#TissotUCITrackWC #Rememberthename pic.twitter.com/Lq4LipSMM8
— Cycling Canada (@CyclingCanada) November 30, 2019
Barrette was the fastest in his first round heat of the keirin, while Pedal 2 the Medal’s Nick Wammes placed third in his. A repechage saw Wammes came second in Heat 3 but his day was done. In Heat 2 of the second round Barrette was fifth, which put him in the 7-12 final where he secured his eighth place.
Derek Gee was sixth in the omnium in Glasgow, and on Saturday he got off to a decent start with 15th out of 24 athletes in the scratch race. Gee’s best result of the four contests was 10th in the points race.
Barrette and Wammes are back in action on Sunday in the individual sprint. Genest contests the keirin and Devaney Collier takes a journey through the omnium.
