Cycling: Archbold steals ominium silver

Shane Archbold of New Zealand competes in Men's Omnium Individual Pursuit. Photo / Getty Images

Young Timaru rider Shane Archbold produced a stunning ride in the final time trial to claim a silver medal on the penultimate night of finals at the world track cycling championships in the Netherlands today.

Archbold, fourth going into the final 1000m time trial, produced a personal best and the only sub-1min 04sec ride to boost him to second place in the gruelling six-event omnium at the Apeldoorn Velodrome.

It brought New Zealand's tally to four medals to equal the record haul from last year in Copenhagen.

It proved to be a roller coaster ride for Archbold who jumped from fourth overnight to first place after finishing second fastest in the 4000m individual pursuit in 4min 26.828sec, heading Australian Michael Freiberg by one point.

However he got boxed in during the scratch race and struggled home back in 11th place to drop back to fourth, nine points behind the Australian who took out the event.

Archbold then produced a superb 1min 03.878sec effort to best the field in the final 1000m time trial, his first time under the 1min 04sec barrier. He won the event to finish on 38 points, four points adrift of gold medalist Freiberg.

"It's more about PBs and consistency so in that respect I was annoyed not to have consistent bunch rides but I am sure in a couple of hours I will be pretty happy to have a silver medal around my neck," Archbold said.

"I've never raced in an elite track world championships before so I didn't know what it was all about.

"Obviously coming out of yesterday's points race especially, I am happy to get up in to the medals."

Archbold's strengths had been the bunch events but this week he was a disappointing 16th in the points race and 11th in the scratch race, while he won the time trial, was second in the pursuit and fourth in the flying lap at Apeldoorn.

"The timed events I can work on back home in my backyard but the bunch events I can never control what happens, and coming into the scratch race as the winner overall, I was out-raced by some better racers.

"Carsie (head coach Tim Carswell) was geeing me up for the timed events and I never disappoint him in them. But to do a 1min 03sec on a slow track like this and beat Tim Veldt (former European kilo champion) and all the other omnium riders in what is normally my weakest time event is pretty awesome."

Archbold said his disappointing effort in the points race, usually one of his strengths, on the first day probably cost him a rainbow jersey.

However he is not letting the world championship silver medal effort manifest into a London Olympic dream yet.

"It's 16 months away. It's a lot of time. There are four more world cups and a world championship to get through. All I can hope for is that I get faster from the times I am doing now and then it's about getting luckier in the points and scratch race. That's all I can do."

Meanwhile, 21-year-old Southland sprinter Eddie Dawkins finished sixth in the final of the men's keirin.

The big Invercargill rider won his repechage and finished third in the semifinal to progress to the final. He impressed, but got boxed in when the heat went on with a lap to go in the final won by Australian Shane Perkins from Beijing gold medallist Chris Hoy (Britain).

It was his first time in the elite company of the world superstars of keirin and was further proof of his burgeoning potential.

His teammate Simon van Velthooven (Palmerston North) was edged out by the closest of margins in his repechage and did not progress.

Christchurch rider Joanne Kiesanowski goes into tomorrow's second day of the women's omnium in seventh place with her 17th placing in the points race proving costly.

She was ninth in a strong effort in the flying lap clocking a 14.992sec best on the heavy Apeldoorn track, just fractionally outside her best, and showed her superb track skills to finish second in exciting elimination race.

Tomorrow she competes in the individual pursuit, scratch race and time trial.

The final day of the championships feature Kiesanowski in the omnium, Aaron Gate and Tom Scully combine in the 50km Madison and both Dawkins and van Velthooven are back in action in the kilo time trial.

- NZPA