BALLERUP, Denmark — Dutch cyclist Harrie Lavreysen signed off a record-breaking week at the UCI Track Cycling World Championships as he rode to gold in the men’s sprint in Ballerup, Denmark.
Powerhouse Lavreysen, who swept to three Olympic golds in Paris this year, easily beat fellow Dutchman Jeffrey Hoogland in a one-sided final, winning both heats.
The previous night the 27-year-old won the 1km time trial to claim a record 15th world track title, taking him ahead of France’s Arnaud Tournant who won 14 between 1997 and 2008.
Lavreysen, who has made himself almost unbeatable in track sprinting, also won the team sprint in Denmark, although he surprisingly missed out the podium in the keirin.
The Dutch team topped the medals table with four golds, the same as Britain who actually won the most medals overall, Reuters reported.
Britain’s Emma Finucane was unable to match Lavreysen’s three golds as she missed out on a medal in the keirin on the final day.
Finucane, who retained her sprint title and also won the team sprint, came fourth with team mate Katy Marchant taking bronze. Japan’s Mina Sato won gold, Japan’s third gold medal of a successful championships for the nation.
Untouchable in the sprint, the five-time defending champion won the main event to hammer home his dominance on the final day of competition at Ballerup in the suburbs of Copenhagen.
The five-time Olympic champion’s next big goal remains Los Angeles 2028, where he aims to beat British rider Jason Kenny’s record of seven Olympic titles.
In the women’s event, home hope Julie Leth, competing in the very last race of her career, struck gold amid an electric atmosphere in a packed velodrome.
The 32-year-old, winner of the Madison, won the points race ahead of Belgian star Lotte Kopecky and Ireland’s Lara Gillespie.
Japan’s Mina Sato beat Dutch rider Hetty van de Wouw to win the women’s Keirin with Britain’s Katy Marchant third.
Six-time Olympic cycling champion Chris Hoy revealed that he has terminal cancer and has been told by doctors he has “two to four years” to live.
The 48-year-old former track racer announced in February that he had been diagnosed with the disease and was undergoing chemotherapy but insisted the treatment was “going really well”.
However, the Scottish sporting legend said that he knew at the time his illness was terminal.
When asking doctors how long he had left, he said he was told: “Two to four years”.
“We were all born and we all die, and this is just part of the process,” Hoy said according to AFP.
“You remind yourself, aren’t I lucky that there is medicine I can take that will fend this off for as long as possible. But most of the battle for me with cancer hasn’t been physical. For me, it has been in my head.”
Hoy explained he had initially shrugged off pain in his shoulder as an injury caused by exertions in the gym.
When he was referred for a scan, he was told by a doctor: “I’m really sorry. There’s a tumour in your shoulder.”
