Terpe
18th February 2012, 21:22
Great Britain won two gold medals with world record times on a thrilling first night of finals at the Track World Cup in London's Olympic Velodrome.
Victoria Pendleton and Jess Varnish set a new world best of 32.754 seconds as they beat Kaarle McCulloch and Anna Meares of Australia in the team sprint.
Dani King, Laura Trott and Joanna Rowsell then beat Canada in a record 3:18.148 in the team pursuit final.
Sir Chris Hoy led GB's men's sprint team to bronze as they edged Australia.
The team of Ross Edgar, Jason Kenny and Hoy had missed out on a final place in the qualifying session, and Germany went on to beat France for gold in the evening, but Hoy was overwhelmed by the atmosphere in the new velodrome.
"Honestly, I've never been to any venue, any track in the world, and seen any home nation get the support we've had today," he told BBC Sport. "The wall of noise when you're on the track is unbelievable.
"We all had lumps in our throat when Vicky and Jess were on the podium and it's hard not to get caught up in that emotion.
"I believe the crowd have been a decisive factor in our performances today. Goodness knows what it will be like in a few months' time."
And asked about his team's performance ahead of April's World Championships in Melbourne, and the Olympic Games in August, Hoy said: "We're probably about a length and a half behind [the top men's sprint teams] but we're a new formation, a new combination, and that was our fastest time since 2009.
Read it here (http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cycling/17078405)
Victoria Pendleton and Jess Varnish set a new world best of 32.754 seconds as they beat Kaarle McCulloch and Anna Meares of Australia in the team sprint.
Dani King, Laura Trott and Joanna Rowsell then beat Canada in a record 3:18.148 in the team pursuit final.
Sir Chris Hoy led GB's men's sprint team to bronze as they edged Australia.
The team of Ross Edgar, Jason Kenny and Hoy had missed out on a final place in the qualifying session, and Germany went on to beat France for gold in the evening, but Hoy was overwhelmed by the atmosphere in the new velodrome.
"Honestly, I've never been to any venue, any track in the world, and seen any home nation get the support we've had today," he told BBC Sport. "The wall of noise when you're on the track is unbelievable.
"We all had lumps in our throat when Vicky and Jess were on the podium and it's hard not to get caught up in that emotion.
"I believe the crowd have been a decisive factor in our performances today. Goodness knows what it will be like in a few months' time."
And asked about his team's performance ahead of April's World Championships in Melbourne, and the Olympic Games in August, Hoy said: "We're probably about a length and a half behind [the top men's sprint teams] but we're a new formation, a new combination, and that was our fastest time since 2009.
Read it here (http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cycling/17078405)