Men's sprint events preview
Carson, Calif. (March 22, 2005)— Some of the most anticipated events of the 2005 UCI Track Cycling World Championships to be held March 24-27, at the ADT Event Center in Carson, California, are the men’s sprint style races. Events considered to be sprint-oriented include the keirin, sprint, one kilometer time trial, and team sprint.
“The men’s sprint events are spectator favorites because of the incredible speed and agility of the athletes,” said Pat McDonough, USA Cycling director of track cycling.
The reigning sprint world champion, Theo Bos (NED), leads an all-star field of the world’s fastest sprinters. One big name not on the list though is 2004 Athens Olympic champion Ryan Bayley who is out with an injury. Of the 32 athletes registered for the sprint event, five have medaled in previous world championship sprint competitions and three of them are former world champions.
Bos is favored in the event having proven his strength throughout the 2004/05 world cup season. In the two events attended by the 22-year-old he was able to win the 1km TT in Los Angeles and both the sprint and keirin in Sydney.
His toughest competition will likely come from Arnaud Tournant and Mickaël Bourgain of France and Jobie Dajka of Australia. Tournant, the 2001 world sprint champion, is always a threat with lightning fast speed and excellent bike handling skills. Bourgain, with two wins against tough opposition that included Dajka and Tournant in the world cup season, may also be prepared to take on the young sprinter. Dajka, the 2002 world keirin champion, placed second in the world championship sprint in 2002 and 2003. His recent world cup performances may represent his return to the top.
Riders not to be forgotten about include 2004 Olympic sprint bronze medalist René Wolff (GER), 2000 world sprint champion Jan Van Eijden (GER), Grégory Bauge (FRA), Chris Hoy (GBR), Stefan Nimke (GER), Moscow world cup winner Sergey Ruban (RUS), Kazuya Narita (JPN), and Lukasz Kwiatkowski (POL). Each has the ability and speed to surprise the frontrunners in the one-on-one match-ups of the sprint.
In the keirin, Jamie Staff (GBR) comes into the event as the reigning world champion. He is exceptionally quick having come from a BMX racing background, but in the chaotic keirin final it could be anyone’s title for the taking. Other top competitors in the 2km (8-lap) event include: Shane Kelly (AUS), Dajka, Wolff, Ivan Vrba (CZE), Jose Escuredo (ESP), and Tournant.
The 2004 world and Olympic 1km TT Champion, Chris Hoy, appears to be in perfect form having won the event at the Manchester World Cup with a time of 1:01.671. Hoy’s greatest competition is expected to come from Tournant, a four time world 1km TT champion and the current world record holder (58.875), Theo Bos, the Los Angeles world cup champion, Jason Queally (GBR), 2000 Olympic 1km TT Champion, and Nimke, the 2003 world 1km TT champion and bronze medalist at the 2004 Athens Games.
The only sprint style team event in track cycling is the team sprint. In 2004 the French (Bourgain, Tournant, and Laurent Gané) proved victorious at the world championships after taking on Spain (Jose Escuredo, M. Salvador, Jose Villanueva) in the final round. With Laurent Gané not returning for the French (2005 team: Hervé Gané, Bourgain, Bauge, and François Pervis) it may open the door for the Dutch (Bos, Teun Mulder, and Tim Veldt), British (Hoy, Craig McLean, Queally, and Staff), Germans, or Spaniards to take the top podium position in the three lap all out sprint affair.
For more information on the 2005 UCI Track Cycling World Championships March 24-27, visit the USA Cycling website at www.usacycling.org.
To request a media credential for the 2005 UCI Track Cycling World Championships, visit www.uci.ch/uci.
A copy of the UCI Track Cycling World Championships media guide is available here.
About USA Cycling
Recognized by the U.S. Olympic Committee and the Union Cycliste Internationale, USA Cycling promotes American cycling through its 50,000 members and 2,000 annual events. USA Cycling associations include the BMX Association (BMX), National Off-Road Bicycle Association (mountain bike), U.S. Cycling Federation (road/track), the National Collegiate Cycling Association and the U.S. Professional Racing Organization (professional men’s road). For more information visit www.usacycling.org or contact, USA Cycling Director of Communicaitons, Andy Lee at 719-866-4867.
About Jacob Burns, Inc.
Jacob Burns, Inc., is a design, marketing and public relations firm that specializes in interactive design. The base of the organization is set in three central principles including: simple designs are more effective than complex ones, designs must integrate with the marketing plan and promote continuity, and designs must be easily understood and take into account target demographic capabilities. For more information visit www.jacobburns.com or call 610.730.7349.
“The men’s sprint events are spectator favorites because of the incredible speed and agility of the athletes,” said Pat McDonough, USA Cycling director of track cycling.
The reigning sprint world champion, Theo Bos (NED), leads an all-star field of the world’s fastest sprinters. One big name not on the list though is 2004 Athens Olympic champion Ryan Bayley who is out with an injury. Of the 32 athletes registered for the sprint event, five have medaled in previous world championship sprint competitions and three of them are former world champions.
Bos is favored in the event having proven his strength throughout the 2004/05 world cup season. In the two events attended by the 22-year-old he was able to win the 1km TT in Los Angeles and both the sprint and keirin in Sydney.
His toughest competition will likely come from Arnaud Tournant and Mickaël Bourgain of France and Jobie Dajka of Australia. Tournant, the 2001 world sprint champion, is always a threat with lightning fast speed and excellent bike handling skills. Bourgain, with two wins against tough opposition that included Dajka and Tournant in the world cup season, may also be prepared to take on the young sprinter. Dajka, the 2002 world keirin champion, placed second in the world championship sprint in 2002 and 2003. His recent world cup performances may represent his return to the top.
Riders not to be forgotten about include 2004 Olympic sprint bronze medalist René Wolff (GER), 2000 world sprint champion Jan Van Eijden (GER), Grégory Bauge (FRA), Chris Hoy (GBR), Stefan Nimke (GER), Moscow world cup winner Sergey Ruban (RUS), Kazuya Narita (JPN), and Lukasz Kwiatkowski (POL). Each has the ability and speed to surprise the frontrunners in the one-on-one match-ups of the sprint.
In the keirin, Jamie Staff (GBR) comes into the event as the reigning world champion. He is exceptionally quick having come from a BMX racing background, but in the chaotic keirin final it could be anyone’s title for the taking. Other top competitors in the 2km (8-lap) event include: Shane Kelly (AUS), Dajka, Wolff, Ivan Vrba (CZE), Jose Escuredo (ESP), and Tournant.
The 2004 world and Olympic 1km TT Champion, Chris Hoy, appears to be in perfect form having won the event at the Manchester World Cup with a time of 1:01.671. Hoy’s greatest competition is expected to come from Tournant, a four time world 1km TT champion and the current world record holder (58.875), Theo Bos, the Los Angeles world cup champion, Jason Queally (GBR), 2000 Olympic 1km TT Champion, and Nimke, the 2003 world 1km TT champion and bronze medalist at the 2004 Athens Games.
The only sprint style team event in track cycling is the team sprint. In 2004 the French (Bourgain, Tournant, and Laurent Gané) proved victorious at the world championships after taking on Spain (Jose Escuredo, M. Salvador, Jose Villanueva) in the final round. With Laurent Gané not returning for the French (2005 team: Hervé Gané, Bourgain, Bauge, and François Pervis) it may open the door for the Dutch (Bos, Teun Mulder, and Tim Veldt), British (Hoy, Craig McLean, Queally, and Staff), Germans, or Spaniards to take the top podium position in the three lap all out sprint affair.
For more information on the 2005 UCI Track Cycling World Championships March 24-27, visit the USA Cycling website at www.usacycling.org.
To request a media credential for the 2005 UCI Track Cycling World Championships, visit www.uci.ch/uci.
A copy of the UCI Track Cycling World Championships media guide is available here.
About USA Cycling
Recognized by the U.S. Olympic Committee and the Union Cycliste Internationale, USA Cycling promotes American cycling through its 50,000 members and 2,000 annual events. USA Cycling associations include the BMX Association (BMX), National Off-Road Bicycle Association (mountain bike), U.S. Cycling Federation (road/track), the National Collegiate Cycling Association and the U.S. Professional Racing Organization (professional men’s road). For more information visit www.usacycling.org or contact, USA Cycling Director of Communicaitons, Andy Lee at 719-866-4867.
About Jacob Burns, Inc.
Jacob Burns, Inc., is a design, marketing and public relations firm that specializes in interactive design. The base of the organization is set in three central principles including: simple designs are more effective than complex ones, designs must integrate with the marketing plan and promote continuity, and designs must be easily understood and take into account target demographic capabilities. For more information visit www.jacobburns.com or call 610.730.7349.
This Article Published March 22, 2005 For more information contact:
