Commonwealth Games: Dogged veteran central to Kiwi plan

Greg Henderson (centre) withdrew from the Tour de France with injury three weeks ago but will compete in Glasgow. Photo / AP

Greg Henderson's advancing years have aided the cause of the Kiwi men for tonight's Commonwealth Games road race.

The senior member of the New Zealand team, Henderson will have a significant part to play in the event, whether the gold is won in a bunch sprint or a breakaway.

The former will have Henderson, still one of the premier lead-out men in world cycling, challenging for line honours, while the latter is set to see him support the cause of Jack Bauer.

Whatever the scenario, Henderson will be crucial in the cycling team adding to the 14 medals they have claimed already at this Games. And if this country does boost that haul, the result will likely have been produced from a pair of 37-year-old legs.

Henderson is only three weeks removed from a brutal crash in the Tour de France, splitting his knee to the bone and being forced from the race. Had he been 10 years younger, the injury may have healed quicker but his motivation to return would have been significantly less.

"It's my 10th Games now ... that's why I was super motivated to get back, get fit and to these Games," he said. "It could've been easy, if I had a few years left, to be like, 'Oh, I'll do the next Olympics'. It really gave me the motivation to go every day and just ride as far as I could and test the knee."

The joint has passed that test, allowing Henderson to steadily increase his training programme. He recently spent six hours in the saddle, rediscovering his endurance and power.

A bunch sprint may be unlikely tonight but, if one eventuates, Henderson is prepared to illustrate why he belongs among the world's elite.

"All going well, a breakaway can head away, and we have one of the strongest riders in Jack," he said. "But if it comes down to a bunch sprint, then I can still sprint with the best in the world."

A break is much more likely, considering the tight nature of the course and the congested look to the field. Bike NZ high performance manager Mark Elliott predicted carnage at the start of the race, giving Henderson reason to believe a breakaway would leave behind the pack sooner rather than later.

"We don't want to be going round those corners with 140 bike riders, so I'd say the first lap's going to be full gas to get rid of the excess baggage," Elliott said.

"I can really see 10 riders getting away and, because it's so technical and up-and-down and dodgy corners, a small group will work better."

That means New Zealand's "No1 plan" will revolve around putting a rider in the break, preferably Bauer or perhaps Jesse Sergent.

"We'd probably prefer to have Jack in [the breakaway], because he's stronger than I am," Henderson said.

The unglamorous work would hardly be an appropriate way to conclude a glittering Games career, but Henderson is happy to just make the startline. He planned to relish every moment of the race, even if his employers, Team Lotto-Belisol, were a bit bemused by the event.

"To us right here, it means so much," he said.

"For New Zealand, 100 per cent. And for the family, 100 per cent. For my pro team? They're not sure what the Commonwealth Games are." APNZ