Erin Boothman smashed the Scottish Individual pursuit record by over 18 seconds, in a night packed with rapid times.
With Commonwealth Games standards forefront in the minds of many riders on Friday night, the sweltering Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome would witness four national titles be decided.
For the first time the female individual pursuit field would test themselves over 16 laps of the 250m track, instead of the 12 – as is now the case at international level.
Erin Boothman (Team Jayco-Liv-AlUla) set the early pace in the female 4km individual pursuit qualifying, starting strong and quickly passing her Great Britain Cycling Team-mate Arabella Blackburn.
As the race entered its final tours, Boothman emptied the tank, leaving everything on the track. The Glasgow rider would set a storming time of 4:34.848 – over 18 seconds quicker than the current Scottish record.
Boothman’s time in qualifying would also be enough to claim her final Team Scotland standard required for next summers’ games. The four-time junior world champion will now be eligible for selection to ride for her country next summer.
Joining Boothman on that eligible list will be fellow Glaswegian Kate Richardson (Handsling-Alba). The British criterium champion set a time of 4:47.441. which was good enough for the “B” standard – all that Richardson required after her excellent exploits at the 4 Jours de Genéve.
Richardson would also take the gold medal in an uncontested final – as Boothman paid for her deep efforts, in what was her first ever individual pursuit and was unable to ride the final.
Jenny Holl (Loughborough Lightning) switched the tandem for a pursuit bike with her strong ride of 4:52.7 qualifying her for the bronze final against the aforementioned Arabella Blackburn.
Holl would ride a measured performance in the final to best her Aberdeenshire-based rival in the final to take bronze.
Off the back of two excellent performances in Geneva, Logan Maclean (One Life x Brookfield Properties) joined Richardson and Boothman on the Team Scotland eligible list, with a storming qualifying ride of 4:15.848 in the open individual pursuit.
Not to be outdone was Tim Shoreman (Wheelbase CabTech Castelli) who set a 4:13.304 and join Maclean in the final. Shoreman, who won the 2023 Scottish Road Race title, would also claim his first Team Scotland qualifying standard with his rides this evening.
Shoreman would follow up his ride with a 4:14.392 in the final to take gold, with Maclean taking silver. Matti Dobbins (Edinburgh Bike Fitting) produced two solid rides to finish with the bronze medal.
The Scotland Performance Development Squad of Iona Moir, Ellie Stone and Maddy Silcock provisionally broke the Scottish record in qualifying of the female team sprint with a time of 48.590.
Besting the time set by Moir, with Lauren Bell and Lusia Steele at the last Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
The trio would take gold in the final, ahead of a VC Astar Anderside outfit of Frances Tierney, Deborah Ferns and Zara Mair. While the bronze would go to University of Glasgow’s trio of Beatrix Kiehlmann, Yasmin MacPhail and Keira Stoney.
It would be an all-Glasgow Track Racing Club affair in the open team sprint, with the A team from GTRC of Issac Small, Calum McNicol and Struan Ferns winning out ahead of the B team of Ian Barton, Jim Barr and Tom Nicholson.
A great ride from the A Squad who produced a time of 47.577 in the final, to become Scottish National Champions.
A great start to the Scottish National Championships, with an even busier Day Two tomorrow, be sure to join us on YouTube with our live stream on from 12:45.