KEY POINTS:
New Zealand cycling greats Gary Anderson and Ron Cheatley have no doubt that Hayden Roulston's greatest advantage when he seeks to emulate Sarah Ulmer at the Beijing Olympics is his "ticker".
Roulston will start New Zealand's track programme in the men's 4000m individual pursuit, aiming to match Ulmer's
gold in the women's 3000m four years ago.
The 27-year-old Ashburton rider comes into the event ranked fourth in the world with a best of 4m 18.334s, set at the world championships in Manchester in March.
The world record, set by Briton Chris Boardman in 1996 is 4m 11.114s, while his countryman Bradley Wiggins won the event at Athens in 4m 16.304s.
Wiggins won the world title in Manchester in 4m 18.519s, beating Jenning Huizenga of the Netherlands. Huizenga was the fastest qualifier with a time of 4m 16.343s, setting the benchmark which Roulston needs to meet.
Anderson, the only New Zealand male to win an Olympics track cycling medal - a pursuit bronze in Barcelona in 1992 - said Roulston was "like [2000 Olympics single sculls rowing gold medallist] Rob Waddell - he's got a huge engine".
"The guy's got the right physique for riding, he's got a short upper body and very long legs, which give him a lot of leverage - he's got a lot of things going for him as far as bike riding goes."
Roulston was a "very positive, strong-willed sort of guy and was now showing awesome, fabulous potential and professionalism".
'It's going to be pretty good if he can put some of that talent into getting good results," said Anderson who also won a total of eight medals from the 1986 and 1990 Commonwealth Games.
Cheatley, national track and road coach at Olympic and Commonwealth Games level from 1982 until 2000, considered Roulston cycling's equivalent of horse racing great Phar Lap for his explosiveness.
"Roulston and the men's individual pursuit team would both be knocking on the door for medals and it is not beyond their capabilities," Cheatley said.
Roulston's cycling career has hit numerous highs - he won nine amateur races in France as a rookie in 2002, rode professionally with top French side Cofidis (2003-04) and on seven-times Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong's Discovery Channel team in 2005.
The highlight of this period was a madison silver medal with Greg Henderson at the 2003 world championships.
He plumbed the lows when injuries disrupted his Discovery Channel stint, forcing an early release from his contract. He was involved in two separate bar fights between 2004 and 2006 which led to court appearances and fines of $800 and $300.
In 2006, after winning silver in the points race at the Melbourne Commonwealth Games, he attempted to relaunch his professional road career with US team HealthNet but was then diagnosed with a potentially fatal heart ailment.
In a clear sign of his courage and single-mindedness, Roulston's second coming began soon after.
He brushed aside doctors' warnings to stop racing and proceeded to win the national road race and individual and team pursuit titles in 2006. He also won back-to-back Tour of Southland and Tour of Wellington titles in 2006 and 2007.
He marked his return to national colours by winning the Oceania madison and road race titles in 2007 after convincing New Zealand selectors that his "heart problem" was no more.
A matured Roulston states flatly that, going into his second Olympiad, his time has come.
"I am feeling in a good space, physically and mentally - I am feeling the best I have ever been."
He said the individual pursuit was his main goal but he also had the team pursuit, where New Zealand are fourth in the world, and the madison as backups in his search for gold.
Road training in France in the past two months had given him the endurance to race consistently, he said. Preparations had been spot on and he was now concentrating on improving his speed and technique.
- NZPA
