Britain’s cycling fraternity pass on trade secrets like a family business. While Jason Queally, winner of the 1km time trial in 2000, was instrumental in Chris Hoy doing likewise here in Athens on Friday, the same applied in yesterday’s men’s individual pursuit. Chris Boardman, who still holds the world record in the event of 4:11.114, has been working as “expert adviser” to Bradley Wiggins for the past couple of years, although a more accurate term would probably be ‘father figure’. Yesterday, his boy delivered gold.
The inspiration started even earlier than Boardman could have known, however. It was watching Boardman win gold in Barcelona in 1992 in the same event that persuaded Wiggins to start the sport. “Seeing that, I decided there and then that I wanted an Olympic gold of my own,” said Wiggins last night. “Working together we built a friendship straight away and Chris has really simplified the pursuit for me.”
Boardman has described his mentoring role “more as counselling than anything else”. If there is advice, Boardman keeps it straightforward. “He tells me all I need to do is get from A to B in the fastest possible time,” said Wiggins. It is tougher in practice than theory.
In the 4,000m individual pursuit, the two cyclists start on opposite sides of the track and chase each other over the distance. In the early rounds that can mean passing your rival, but the margins are usually much closer come the medal positions. Not yesterday.
Wiggins did not merely defeat his rival, he almost broke him. His time of 4:16.304 left Brad McGee, the Australian, trailing in 4:20.436. Wiggins attacked from the outset and, while McGee began to claw the deficit back, Wiggins had the strength to accelerate at the halfway mark. He claims he “died” in the final lap, but by then the contest was no longer alive.
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Wiggins’s stance is always to race against the clock rather than give time to thinking about his opponent. If he is fast enough that will be enough.
Boardman, who retired in 2000 after breaking the hour distance record at the world championships in Manchester, still finds coaching second best to riding, but stays with it because it is as close as he can get.
Wiggins is told to treat his career like running a business, and the pair’s dealings are deliberately formal. The ethos is that every race should be treated like another day in the office.
The Olympic Velodrome is hardly your typical office space, though. Its roof can politely be described as a victory for design over function. It sweeps over the track like a passing spacecraft, but the venue is open at the sides, allowing the heat and wind too much of a say. Wiggins was watched by his family, including his partner, Kathy. “It sounded like he had a couple of jumbo jets’ worth of British followers out there,” sighed McGee about the partisan crowd.
That Wiggins, world champion in Stuttgart last year, and McGee, who regained his title this year in Melbourne, should be contesting the individual pursuit final was always the anticipated outcome here.
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In Friday’s qualifying, Wiggins recorded an Olympic record of 4:15.165, substantially faster than Robert Bartko’s previous mark — from Sydney, in 2000 — of 4:18.515. The German was sixth-fastest first time out and was defeated by McGee in Friday’s first round. For Wiggins, this was a statement of intent.
McGee had defeated Wiggins at the Commonwealth Games in Manchester and it was this setback that prompted the Belgian-born Brit — and five advisers, including Boardman — to formulate a strategy with one specific aim: beating McGee. The Australian took that as a compliment. “It’s always a pleasure to race against Bradley,” he said. The pair did a lap of honour arm-in-arm afterwards and McGee revealed he will happily join his rival for a beer.
“It’s something I’d been building up to for the last four years on a minute-to-minute basis,” Wiggins concluded. “The pressure’s just been immense. Mainly I’ve put pressure on myself because it’s been a childhood dream to win at the Olympics. It’s all a bit surreal at the moment — it doesn’t quite feel right. One of those days that you’ll never forget.”
In the earlier bronze medal race, Rob Hayles was beaten by Sergi Escobar of Spain, whose 4:17.947 proved too fast. The men’s team sprint was another British disappointment. In the qualifying round, the combination of Craig MacLean, Jamie Staff and Chris Hoy were only seventh-fastest in 44.693, giving them a problematic first-round draw against second-fastest Germany.
MacLean’s normally reliable expertise at starting was missing and his 18.200sec first lap was the tenth-fastest for that split in the field. That forced a team change in the first round, with Jason Queally replacing MacLean, but riding last and Hoy now starting.
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That produced a much-improved time of 44.075 — the second-fastest overall — but it was not enough to defeat Germany, and the qualification rule is that only the four fastest winners qualify. The Germans went on to defeat Japan in the final with 43.980. “Who would have thought Japan would make the final?” said Hoy, who had sought a second consecutive gold.
“I was confident I was going well in my individual event, but I always saw the team sprint as the banker. The French are strong, but I always thought we’d get gold. We’ve had a few years of getting bronzes and silvers in the event so hoped this would be the one.”
MacLean departed the venue in tears, shouldering the blame, but Hoy, his fellow Scot, was not about to apportion any. “Craig didn’t produce what he’s capable of,” Hoy said, “but he’s been a mainstay of this team for a long time. That’s sport, it’s all about highs and lows. We went out and Bradley got his gold for the team straight afterwards.” There it was: that unmistakeable family ethos again.