Cycling: Ulmer only .08 sec from Games glory

By CHRIS RATTUE

Cyclist Sarah Ulmer came agonisingly close to winning New Zealand's first Sydney Olympic Games medal on Monday night - only to have a bronze snatched from her grasp in the shadow of the finish line.

Ulmer appeared in command after setting up a clear lead over Britain's Yvonne McGregor from the first lap of the 3000m pursuit.

But she faltered in the last dash to the line, and the medal was lost by 0.08 seconds - equal to about half a cycle wheel.

Ulmer said the loss was gut-wrenching, but she was gracious in defeat, refusing to blame a pinched abdominal nerve, which had hampered her training.

"A medal will be awesome for the New Zealand team, and it will happen," she said. "The feeling in the cycling squad and the whole New Zealand team at the games is awesome.

"You can't blame the injury. I can't. Sure it was a setback but you've just got to make the most of the time you've got.

"Put it behind you. Get on with it. The best person won. Someone has got to win and someone has got to lose. She was better than me. I gave it my all."

The New Zealander started strongly.

At 1000m, she was 1.267s up; at the 2000m the margin was 1.765s.

With a lap to ride she was still .822s in front.

Pain etched on her face, her bike wobbling, Ulmer put her head down and dug in hard for what would have been the first Olympic cycling medal won by a New Zealand woman.

She didn't make it.

As she faltered, McGregor found the legs to make one last charge, sneaking home from what seemed an impossible position.

The loss left New Zealand without a medal after three days of the Games.

The 24-year-old Aucklander's father, mother, brother and friends flew from New Zealand to watch her try to win New Zealand's first medal.



Ulmer said she had been wanting to give the New Zealand team at the Games a lift with a winning ride.



"I felt the race was slipping with two laps to go. I was going backwards. She was coming at me.

"With a couple of laps to go, I was gasping. It proved I wasn't in the condition you need to be to race 3000m."

The injury, which revealed itself when she joined the New Zealand training camp in Adelaide last month, devastated her buildup for the race. The pinched abdominal nerve affected a hamstring and came at the worst possible time after a year of excellent results on track and road.

It kept her off her bike for a week and forced her to rely on base fitness work rather than going through a specialised buildup.

Ulmer lines up in the points race on Thursday evening.

But because of the injury, she has done little training for that event, concentrating instead on the pursuit.



The pursuit title was won by Leontien Zijljaard from Holland, twice world champion, who left France's Marion Clignet with her second successive Olympic silver medal.

Ulmer has had the better of McGregor in previous competitions - the Bradford rider was third when Ulmer won gold in the pursuit at the Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur.

But her coach, Ron Cheatley, said Ulmer's injury gave the advantage to the British rider yesterday.

McGregor's semifinal time on Sunday night was a good five seconds faster than that of Ulmer who appeared to ease off after she was lapped by Zijljaard.

The Dutch rider set a world record in that race.