KEY POINTS:
Timaru track cyclist Marc Ryan finished fifth in the individual pursuit on the opening night of the World Cup meet in Beijing yesterday.
Ryan rode considerably faster than when he was fourth in the same event in Sydney last weekend, clocking a personal best time of 4m 24.444s.
England's Brad Wiggins won the gold medal from last week's winner Volodymyr Dyudya of the Ukraine.
Ryan was edged out of the top four by brilliant young American prospect Taylor Phinney, the world junior time trial champion.
Dunedin's Greg Henderson finished a disappointing 10th in the men's points race.
He qualified second in his heat in comfortable fashion and was in a break that put a lap on the field but a six-man break then put a further lap on the field, with the race won by world champion Joan Llaneras of Spain.
Wanganui's Cath Cheatley was 13th in the final of the women's scratch race, after qualifying in 10th place.
Dutch rider Marianne Vos won the final from Australia's Belinda Goss.
Dunedin's Alison Shanks was ninth fastest with 3m 41.91s in the heats of the women's individual pursuit, won by Australian Katie MacTier.
The Beijing meet is the second of four UCI World Cups which provide key qualifying points for the 2008 Olympics, with riders also gaining experience in Beijing this weekend on the velodrome to be used for next year's Olympiad.
- NZPA
