A magnificent seven national titles were up for grabs on day three of the Scottish National Track Championships in Glasgow.
The Female Sprint events have been incredibly competitive so far – and Sunday’s Sprint was no different.
Ellie Stone (Black Line) was one of the favourites after claiming the 500m Time Trial title on Saturday, and showed why by qualifying quickest in the Flying 200m in the Morning Session with a time of 11.329; which allowed herself and Sylvia Misztal (Glasgow Track RC) to progress straight into the Semi Finals as fastest qualifiers.
The other qualifiers had to go through the quarter final round, with Kirsty Johnson (Edinburgh RC) and Maddie Silcock progressing to the final four.
Johnson had admitted afterwards that she had never bested Stone in a Sprint before but pounced at the opportunity in the first of three semi-final rides to come past Stone and go 1-0 up. The second heat saw Stone lead out the sprint with Johnson just able to secure her place in the final with straight rides. Stone would later claim the bronze medal after winning the Bronze Final in straight rides.
The final saw Johnson up against Sylvia Misztal who had looked on-form all week, but even more so in the Sprint. The Glasgow Track RC rider went 1-0 up in the first Gold Medal ride, however, Johnson was able to turn the tide in second ride after coming from behind to draw level and take it to a decider.
The decider was the final race of the Championships, and rounded it off with some excellent racing by two closely matched riders. A trackstand competition broke it out after the obligatory half lap of forward motion, with the Edinburgh Road Club rider leading out the sprint, before her opponent launched first with 200m to go but Johnson was able to use the slingshot and inertia of the steep banking to come over the top and hold off a battling Mistzal to take home her third gold medal.
We were treated to an excellent Keirin competition over the afternoon with William Munday (Glasgow Track RC) taking the victory after a late surge on the final lap.
Munday had already claimed gold in Team Sprint on Friday evening but was able to taste individual success after coming through the field and over the top of Jeremy Franks (Glasgow Track RC) who launched early. Lyall Craig’s (Glasgow Track RC) last gasp lunge was enough for the silver, while Franks was able to hold on for bronze to ensure a lockout of the podium.
William Munday (Glasgow Track RC) claimed the Keirin title after a dramatic finish, where he caught and passed Jeremy Franks in the final, who claimed the bronze
Lyall Craig’s last gasp lunge was enough for the silver
Munday adds to his Team Sprint Gold on Friday.#SCNatChamps pic.twitter.com/LAl4UMs05g
— Scottish Cycling (@ScottishCycling) December 10, 2023
The 15km Scratch Race was always poised to be an interesting encounter, Aaron King (Wheelbase CabTech Castelli) was a marked man after his escape antics in Saturday’s Points Race, as was defending Champion Calum Twelves (Torres-Fernando Barcelo) after his tireless efforts, and as a result no riders were able to establish a breakaway.
The medals were decided with the final sprint to the line, with Matti Dobbins (Zappi RT) showing his colours by claiming the gold medal, from King in second place. Conal Davidson (Spokes RT) impressed throughout and was rewarded with the bronze medal.
The Female 15km Points Race saw Eilidh Shaw (Alba Development RT) hold nothing back and claim her second gold in as many days, with Jude Paterson (RT23) claiming silver and Gillian Anderson (VC Astar Anderside) the bronze.
The morning and early lunchtime races saw the tests against the clock, with the Pursuits and Kilometre Time Trial for the spectators to enjoy.
Ryan Lateward (SES Racing) produced an excellent 1:04.036 in the Open Kilometre Time Trial final to claim the gold medal. The last rider out of the gate had to beat Anthony Young’s (Glasgow Track RC) time of 1:07.017 to snatch the top step of the podium and did more than enough to do so. There was a great ride from Liam Scott Douglas (JG Cycles) to take bronze with a 1:07.368.
Vanelli Project GO had to work hard for their Open 4km Team Pursuit gold after a spirited ride from VC Glasgow South. Vanelli had started the slower of the two outfits and were as far as two seconds down at one point, but some excellent riding from the quartet in the mid-part of the race had flipped that lead to their advantage.
Despite a rally from VC Glasgow South to stem their losses, the Vanelli quartet of Andy Bruce, Jason Roberts, Lewis Hutchison and Rob Friel claimed the gold, after being able to push on in the final laps and record a time of 4:24.213. While University of Glasgow’s A squad defeated their B outfit in the Bronze final after making the catch just over 2km into the pursuit.
In the 2km Female Vet 40+ Pursuit Alison Winship MacKay (VC Astar Anderside) was able to show why she is the British Masters Champion in this discipline by claiming gold from Jude Paterson (RT23) by three seconds in the final, while clubmate Frances Tierney took home the bronze medal after catching Lorna Lumley in the bronze medal final.
We would like to thank the fantastic commissaires, volunteers and timekeepers that have made this weekend possible, as well as to our fantastic arena commentary team of Jonny Mitchell and Georgia Holt, as well as Colin Edgar for his dulcet tones on the live stream.
And with that, the Scottish National Track Championships are over for another year, as are all the Scottish National Championship events, as this is our last National event of 2023.
We very much hoped you’ve enjoyed our coverage, and we can’t wait to kick of 2024.