Cycling: Golden girl Ulmer sets Olympic pace

10.45pm

MELBOURNE - Sarah Ulmer took another significant step along her golden pathway to the Athens Olympics with victory in the final of the women's 3000m individual pursuit at the track cycling world championships here tonight.

The Cambridge-based rider, who set a new world mark in qualifying yesterday, saw off a determined challenge from her friend and occasional training partner Australian Katie Mactier to become just New Zealand's second world titleholder since the championships were first contested in 1895.

The Commonwealth champion won in a time of three minutes 31.778 seconds, coming from behind to take the lead with two laps remaining in a tightly-fought 3000m battle at the Vodafone Arena.

Buoyed by her home crowd, Victorian Mactier made her trademark explosive start and led Ulmer by as much as 2.133sec before the New Zealander wore down last year's world championships silver medallist. Mactier tired to cross in a time of 3min 34.859sec.

Ulmer punched the air in delight as she crossed the line and saluted a small band of flag-waving New Zealanders, including her father Gary.

Karen Holliday, who won the points race at Maebashi in Japan in 1990, was New Zealand's first world track cycling champion.

It is Ulmer's second world championship medal, following her bronze in the points race in Germany five years ago.

Victory confirmed her dominance in the discipline in her final major dress rehearsal for the Olympic Games in August.

Ulmer broke Dutch legend Leontien Zijlaard-Van Moorsel's four-year-old world mark in qualifying yesterday, with a stunning ride of 3min 30.604sec.

An out-of-sorts Zijlaard-Van Moorsel surrendered the world crown she has held since 2001 today with another lacklustre effort.

She bowed out of medal contention in the first round of competition with a sluggish effort of 3min 36.306sec.

In her first-round match up, Ulmer predictably obliterated Emma Davies when catching the Englishwoman with two laps of the 12 laps remaining.

Her time of 3min 31.083 again saw her qualify top for the gold medal rideoff.

Mactier clocked 3min 32.599sec to make the final, carving 1-1/2sec off her qualifying time.

Only a handful of New Zealand cyclists have succeeded at the world level.

Harry Kent won silver in the men's 1km time trial in 1970 in England.

A 20-year lull followed before Holliday triumphed, the same day Madonna Harris claimed silver in the individual pursuit.

Converted Australian Anthony Peden was runner-up in the keirin in 1999 while madison duo Greg Henderson and Hayden Roulston also won silver in Germany last year.


Men's keirin, 2nd round (first three per heat to final)

Heat one: 1. Ryan Bayley (Aus). 2. Teun Mulder (Ned). 3. Jamie Staff (Gbr). 4. Jens Fiedler (Ger). 5. Jose Antonio Villanueva Trinidad (Esp). 6. Jan Van Eijden (Ger).

Heat two: 1. Laurent Gane (Fra). Ivan Vrba (Cze). 3. Jose Antonio Escuredo Raimondez (Esp). 4. Shane Kelly (Aus). 5. Florian Rousseau (Fra). 6. Mickael Bourgain (Fra).

Women's 3000m individual pursuit, finals

Gold: SARAH ULMER (NZ) 3:31.778 bt Katie Mactier (Aus) 3:34.859.

Bronze: Elena Tchalykh (Rus) 3:34.199 bt Olga Slyusareva (Rus) 3:36.943.

Women's sprint, second round: Svetlana Grankovskaya (Rus) 12.620 seconds bt Daniela Larreal (Ven), Anna Meares (Aus) 12.026 bt Oxana Grishina (Rus), Simona Krupeckaite (Ltu) 12.018 bt Katrin Meinke (Ger), Natallia Tsylinskaya (Blr) 11.996 bt Jennie Reed (Usa), Victoria Pendleton (Gbr) 12.529 bt Yvonne Hijgenaar (Ned), Lori-Ann Muenzer (Can) 12.042 bt Tamilla Abassova (Rus)