Britons Cathy Archibald, Anna Morris, Eleanor Baker, Megan Barker and Josie Knight celebrate on the catwalk (left to right) Photo: Getty Images/Oli Scarff.
Kathy Archibald inspired the UK women's team to fight for their first world title in nearly a decade, to set the mark less than a year before next year's Paris Olympics.
As figurehead of the team, Archibald led the group from the start, setting a lightning pace that the New Zealanders simply couldn't match before taking a break leaving Eleanor Barker, Josie Knight, Anna Morris to stop time in 4:08.77 and celebrate their first tournament win since 2014 year.
When Archibald slowed down around the wooden planks of the velodrome, it seemed that all of Glasgow stood up to applaud their sports hero, realizing how bitter this victory must have been.
No. The two-time Olympian won her fifth world title in her hometown, but it was her first title since the death of her partner Rab Wardell, a former Scottish mountain bike champion who died of a cardiac arrest in his sleep last year. .
“She is phenomenal. She's my housemate so I see her ups and downs every day,» teammate Knight said. “She had a very difficult couple of weeks. I know her training didn't go the way she wanted and she's the real hero of this team. I tried to rise up and take on this role. She is just phenomenal. We all stepped up and became world champions.”
«Wow!» 😮💨
A phenomenal performance from Great Britain, winning gold in the Women's Elite Team Pursuit! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/ouF30it4x6
— Eurosport (@eurosport) August 5, 2023
Archibald spoke touchingly about Wardall's departure ahead of these championships, opening a candid interview with Telegraph Sport last week.
But under the lights of the velodrome, the 29-year-old, who will compete in the omnium and elimination race later this week, held back her emotions. «Everything comes out, it's an event,» she told BBC Sport. “The other day someone was talking about the impostor syndrome, and you have almost the opposite, we almost consider ourselves the best in the world. But we haven't been on the top rung since 2014, so to make that feeling true, it's nice!»
By the penultimate lap, after Archibald had bowed and left the Cavaliers to carry him home, Great Britain was eyeing the New Zealand.
It was an exemplary victory for the British team of women chasers. It was an opportunity to lay the groundwork before next year's Paris Olympics, and they did just that, advancing more than four seconds to victory in order to take off what looked like a monkey.
«Every year we wanted as much as we did this year and it never worked out, it's very hard to get four or five of you in such peak shape and condition at the same time, everyone is shooting,” said Barker. «So making it a home world championship is phenomenal.»
Britain's Josie Knight (left) hugs Cathy Archibald (right) after beating New Zealand. Photo: Getty Images/Oli Scarff. since becoming a mom, giving birth to son Niko in 2021. «I never thought I'd be here in 18 months and this is the fastest result I've had in 12 years of focusing on team pursuit,» added Barker. “Now I'm a mom, road racer and team chaser and things are going better than ever. It's very liberating.»
Medals continued to flow into Britain on the third day of the championships when Charlie Hutton won gold in the men's downhill mountain biking on the Nevis mountain range in Fort William.
< p>Elsewhere in the Men's C3 Scratch Race, the British won one-two times, with Jaco van Gass winning his second rainbow jersey in as many nights after winning the Men's C3 1K Time Trial the day before, and Finlay Graham won silver.
Para cyclist Sam Ruddock defended her MC1 World Time Trial title while Kat Ferguson took silver in the women's junior road race.
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