Press Release, Sunday, 20th of October 2024
Concluding what has been another excellent week for Irish cycling, Lara Gillespie once again took to the track in the final day of racing at the 2024 Tissot UCI Track World Championships in Ballerup, Denmark.
Ending the championships on a high Gillespie finished third in the Women’s Points Race, claiming her first ever senior championship medal. This result adds to her success from earlier in the week when the Co. Wicklow rider recorded three top ten placings at the championships.
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The Points Race consists of 80 laps and includes a sprint lap every ten laps, each of which offers points to the first five riders across the finish line. Riders can also win 20 points if they successfully gain a lap on the peloton.
Gillespie won three points in the opening sprint. An early lap gain for Jennifer Valente for the USA, Mizuki Ikeda for Japan and Alexandra Manly for Australia saw these three riders gain an early advantage.
New Zealand’s Ally Wollaston may not have been part of the group to take the first lap gain, but her excellent form which has seen her claim two gold medals at these championships continued as she dominated in the sprint laps.
A lap gain and a sprint victory at the midway stage saw Gillespie move into second place, with just ten points separating the top eight riders.
Strong riding from reigning World Champion Lotte Kopecky for Belgium kept her in the mix for a medal as well. Julie Leth for the home nation claimed a second lap gain putting her at the top of the leaderboard as the race entered the final stages.
Gillespie gained more sprint points to keep her in the top five and an excellent finish saw her add ten points to her tally by winning the final sprint which is worth double points.
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Victory went to Leth on a final score of 43, Kopecky was second on 40 and Gillespie completed the podium on 39.
Speaking afterwards Gillespie said: “I am so relieved with this medal because I knew I could do it and I have the legs and every time I’m racing, I’m getting closer and closer.
“This medal means a lot to me and I’m so proud to do it for Ireland, we have a small but mighty team and all of us and the staff have put so much effort this year prepared for the Olympics and for our performance and development. I felt my coaches, and everyone here believed in me and that really drive me on the extra bit. I’m very grateful.”
This concludes a brilliant World Championship where Irish riders have once recorded multiple top ten finishes among the world’s best, showing continued improvement and consistency.
Photos Credit: SW Pix
Gillespie Eighth in Omnium at Track World Championships
Wicklow’s Lara Gillespie put in another strong performance to back up her fifth place finish yesterday to come eight in the Women’s Omnium this evening
Press Release, Friday, 18th of October 2024
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Lara Gillespie recorded a personal best at senior World Championships, claiming eighth place in the Women’s Omnium at the 2024 Tissot UCI Track World Championships in Ballerup, Denmark.
Today, Friday 18th of October, marks the halfway stage of the five-day championships. Today’s result follows on from Gillespie’s fifth place finish in the Elimination Race yesterday evening.
The Omnium consists of four separate races, all taking place on the same today – the Scratch Race, the Tempo Race, the Elimination Race and the Points Race. There are points available for each race and the rider who finishes with the most points wins. Both the Tempo Race and the Points Race offer multiple opportunities for riders to score points throughout the race.
Gillespie, who finished ninth in this event at last years World Championship, was looking to improve on this performance and build on her recent form.
She faced tough competition as 24 riders took to the track. Included in the field was Ally Wollaston for New Zealand who won the Elimination Race last night, reigning World Champion and Olympic Champion Jennifer Valente for the USA and Amalie Dideriksen for the home nation, who finished second last year.
In the opening race, the Scratch race, Gillespie finished sixth. In the Tempo Race Gillespie was tenth, leaving her well positioned ahead of the final two races.
Gillespie remained the top ten after an eighth place finish in the Elimination Race. A crash at the midway stage of the race saw it neutralised for a couple of laps before racing resumed.
Heading into the final race of four, Gillespie was in sixth place overall. Wollaston sat at the top of the leaderboard alongside Anita Stenberg of Norway, both on 104 points.
The Points Race consists of 80 laps, with intermediate sprints offering points every ten laps and 20 points on offer for a lap gain.
Jessica Roberts for Great Britain was the first rider to achieve a lap gain putting her at the top of the leaderboard with just over 30 laps to go.
With 33 laps to go, Gillespie made her move closely marked by Victoire Berteau for France, before being naturalised by Valente. Gillespie continued on the attack, winning 5 points in the next intermediate sprint.
Gillespie remained closely marked throughout the race. The final laps became very tense, with a crash with just four laps to go and riders all keen to try and secure some of the double points that were on offer for the final sprint.
In the end it was Wollaston who secured her second rainbow jersey in as many days. Roberts finished second and Stenberg completed the podium.
Speaking to Cycling Ireland afterward, Gillespie said: “I can be happy with how I raced today because I really suffered a lot, my body was not so happy today but I fought on. I enjoyed the race, I was aggressive at some times but also I had to be conservative with the feeling that my legs and my body had today.
“It’s a consistent performance but I really had hoped for more. I am disappointed but I am very excited for the next few days of racing and I am very grateful for all the support that Cycling Ireland gave me today because they got me through a rough day mentally. I’m looking forward to improving on this result.”
Although today’s result may not have been what Gillespie had hoped for it shows great consistency as she continues to hold her own among some of the best cyclists in the world. She narrowly missed out on a medal at the UEC Track European Championships in January when she finished fourth in the Omnium. On her Olympic debut this summer she finished tenth in the same event in Paris and in preparation for these championships she won the Omnium at the 3 Jours d’Aigle in Switzerland in late September.
Photos Credit: SW Pix
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Tomorrow, Saturday 19th of October, will see Lucy Bénézet Minns will make her senior debut racing in the Individual Pursuit at 13:48 Irish time. At 18:10 Gillespie will join forces with her Olympic teammate Mia Griffin to race in the Madison.
Gillespie will race again on Sunday. She competes in the Points Race, another race she’s demonstrated great form in in recent months.