12 Medals for WA at 2016 Track Nationals
The 2016 Australian Track Cycling Championships have wrapped up in Adelaide with Western Australian athletes claiming 12 medals across the four days of racing.
As previously reported, a first senior national championship title to WAIS athlete Sam Welsford highlighted the campaign, but equally impressive were the high quality rides from WA’s U19 talents, with Tahlay Christie earning three gold medals, whilst debutant Jade Haines picked up dual national titles.
WAIS head cycling coach Clay Worthington summed up the mood when he said “What a week!” before adding “I’m so proud to be working with and for a crew of athletes, staff and supporters who are so positive and dedicated.”
Welsford could barely believe his achievement was real when he spoke with reporters following his individual pursuit victory over former world champion Michael Hepburn.
“I came off the track and I still couldn’t believe it,” Welsford said.
“I got two seconds last year so to get a win I’m absolutely stoked.
“I went out and made sure I put some early pressure on (him) because I know once he gets settled into that fast pace he’s pretty much untouchable.”
With the result set to earn Welsford a maiden senior world championships team berth in 2016, the prospect of Olympic selection has crystallised into a tantalisingly real opportunity.
“I think about it every time I get out of bed, it’s been my dream since I just started cycling,” Welsford said.
“These national championships are important for all our endurance squad and hopefully this kind of helps my argument but there is still a long way to go with training camps.
“But this is a big confidence boost knowing I can do these fast times.
“We have such a big squad, the depth of it is insane, we have 10-12 guys who can all go sub four minutes so it’s so close.”
WAIS athlete Tahlay Christie added sprint and keirin titles to the time trial success earlier reported on wais.org.au but the sprint crown came following a nasty crash that required medical treatment before she could continue.
Christie had taken victory in the first heat but went down in the second race after clipping the back wheel of Queensland rider Brooke Tucker.
Tucker was warned for entering the sprinter’s lane and after a recess in which Christie was bandaged together, the young dasher came out firing to secure a gutsy victory.
“It feels phenomenal. I was overwhelmed with getting the gold,” Christie said. “Props to Brooke for being a really good competitor. We went out there and did what we could do and getting the gold was really quite an emotional moment for me.”
“It’s a really good achievement from me to be able to do that against the competition I was faced with,” said Christie. “I’m really proud of the training that I’ve done to build up to this.”
In qualifying Christie set an All Comers record of 11.443secs, bettering the previous record she set at the national championships in 2015 of 11.490secs.
“It was a PB and the fastest I’ve ever gone – in and out of training,” Christie said of her qualifying time. “I was really happy with being able to look up at the clock and see that time and know that all the training I’ve done has built up to that.”
She added a keirin title to wrap up a successful campaign, with fellow WAIS scholarship athlete Jade Haines earning bronze to go with the scratch race and individual pursuit events she won earlier in competition.
Haines was close to adding bronze in the points race, finishing fourth, one point shy of third, whilst WAIS athlete Niken Jefferies was 10th overall.
In the women’s senior elite points race, WAIS athlete Isabella King won a silver medal with 14 points, to finish behind national champion Annette Edmondson (23). Alexandra Manly was third with 12 points.
King also rode strongly in the scratch race to finish in fifth place, with fellow WAIS athlete Elissa Wundersitz ninth.
Sam Welsford narrowly missed a second medal when he crossed in fourth in the men’s scratch race won by Alex Edmondson. WAIS sprint athlete Luke Zaccaria qualified for the men’ keirin final, finishing fifth. The title was won by Olympian Shane Perkins.
WAIS junior Matt Richardson showed a liking for sprint and endurance events, picking up bronze medals in the U19 keirin and scratch races.
The Australian team for the 2016 World Track Championships is expected to be named this week. The World Titles will be held in London from March 2-6.