Cycling: Pursuit full of golden promise

Someone once suggested Jesse Sergent wouldn't look out of place in the stands at a V8 race meeting. Another said he looked like a swimmer because of his broad shoulders.

He's tall and gangly - 188cm and 78kg - with a languid gait and unassuming character but somehow Sergent does have something of the V8 about him - he manages to power a bike faster than just about anyone on the planet.

At this month's track nationals, he smashed the national 4000m individual pursuit record set by Olympic silver medallist Hayden Roulston by nearly five seconds.

At a World Cup meeting at Beijing in January, which he won, he qualified nine seconds faster than his nearest rival and was quicker than Roulston's ride for silver at the Olympics. It will never be known how much faster he could have gone in the final because he lapped his Ukrainian opponent after 3000m.

Sergent has improved his time in the 4000m individual pursuit by a staggering 13s over the past 12 months and his best time, 4m 16.714s, was the second-fastest in the world this year.

What makes it even more astonishing, is that Sergent is only 20, years away from what many believe is a cyclist's peak.

There is very real hope, then, that Sergent can claim gold at this week's world championships in Poland, particularly as triple Olympic champion Bradley Wiggins won't be there after switching to the road.

Sergent has taken over the seat vacated by Roulston, who is taking a year off to concentrate on his professional career, but there were no guarantees the double Olympic medallist could have repelled a challenge from the young up-and-comer.

Just 12 months ago, he was No 5 in the men's team pursuit pecking order. By the time the Olympics rolled around in July, Sergent was regarded as their strong man, the rider to put in the long bursts at "full gas".

"He went through a bit of a natural growth spurt," Bike NZ high performance manager Mark Elliott says. "He's got a huge engine on him and physiologically he's very, very powerful.

"He's got great plumbing.

"He's also such an unflappable and tenacious guy and has never been dropped from a pursuit in competition. The sky is the limit as to how good he can be."

It's why Lance Armstrong and his Livestrong under-23 development team added him and team pursuit team-mate Sam Bewley to the star-studded squad being built around American Taylor Phinney, who just happens to have set the fastest time in the individual pursuit this year and will be Sergent's main rival in Poland.

Sergent will join the Livestrong team for six months after the world championships, and can expect to go on a few training rides with Armstrong, but it is on the track where he sees his immediate future. London 2012 is the main goal and the road and its greater riches can wait.

It was while riding the streets that a 12-year-old Sergent was first exposed to track cycling.

"I just stumbled across it," he says. "Back then, I was cruising around on my BMX like every other little kid. I stumbled across a Velodrome at the end of my street and just watched it and was excited about what I saw.

"I went and asked them what was going on. It was just a local club race and they said they did it every Tuesday night. I decided to give it a go. We had one of the old family bikes in the garage - it was an old clunker - but I found I was naturally good at it."

Two years later, he won his first national title and in 2005, he was a member of the gold medal-winning pursuit team at the junior world championships. He claimed bronze in the individual pursuit the following year and, in his first venture to the senior world championships, finished 10th in the omnium in 2007.

This week promises a lot more. Not bad for an unlikely-looking lad from Feilding.

SIX OF THE BEST

New Zealand could emerge from this week's world cycling championships with an unprecedented six medals.

Just 12 months ago, they claimed only one - Hayden Godfrey's gold in the omnium - but Bike NZ have high expectations there will be considerably more carry-on luggage to bring back from Poland this time around.

Not only is Godfrey a good chance to defend his omnium title but he is also a leading candidate for gold in the scratch race.

Jesse Sergent and Alison Shanks are among the favourites in the men's and women's individual pursuit and the pair will also feature in the men's and women's team's pursuit.

"It's been one heck of a year," Bike NZ high performance manager Mark Elliot said. "It's amazing to think we could come back with six medals from the world champs."

The team: Alison Shanks, Jaime Nielsen, Kaytee Boyd, Lauren Ellis, Jesse Sergent, Marc Ryan, Pete Latham, Westley Gough, Sam Bewley, Hayden Godfrey, Eddie Dawkins, Simon van Velthooven.