Kelsey Mitchell fifth in the keirin on last day of Roubaix 2021 track worlds
Olympic Games keirin bronze medallist Genest comes 10th
The final day of the 2021 UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Roubaix, France saw Kelsey Mitchell racing to 5th in the women’s keirin. Mitchell’s bronze sprint medal stands as Team Canada’s sole medal, although it had three fourth places. Lauriane Genest, who took bronze in the Tokyo Olympic Games in the discipline, was 10th.
It wasn’t an impressive start to Mitchell’s derny journey, as she came fifth in Heat 2 of the first round, while her compatriot Lauriane Genest won Heat 1. However, Mitchell got through to Round 2 by winning Heat 1 of the repechage.
In Round 2 Genest raced to fourth in the first heat, while Mitchell dominated Heat 2, winning by over a half second.
Before Mitchell’s 1-6 final, Genest contested the 7-12 final, where she was 10th.
Mitchell’s medal competitors were a Russian (another Russian, 2019 bronze medalist Daria Shmeleva, who already had two Roubaix medals, withdrew from the race), an American, a Japanese rider, and Germany’s Lea Sophie Friedrich, who Genest had lost to in the sprint semifinal.
Nobody could touch Friedrich. Mitchell gave herself a lot to do and in the end was fifth out of five riders.
Canadians weren’t just in the keirin. Maggie Coles-Lyster faced the long women’s points race, where she finished 12th out of 20 women’s, taking two points on Sprint 2.
The Worlds will be back in France next year in Montigny-le-Bretonneux.
