No less than 72 athletes met on Saturday at the velodrome in Palma, Spain, to compete in the very first stage in the history of the Champions League in track cycling. Among these, we found Hugo Barrette and Lauriane Genest who were able to stand out in separate events.
Eliminated from the outset in the sprint, Barrette recovered well by reaching the grand final at the keirin, where the six best riders in qualifying were gathered to compete for top honors.
Starting from first place for the occasion, the athlete from Îles-de-la-Madeleine got off to a good start, but was unable to keep up the pace in the second portion of the race. His opponents then took advantage of the aspiration to overtake him and relegate him to fifth place.
The German Stefan Botticher was the first to complete the three rounds of the event to sign the victory. The Dutchman Harrie Lavreysen, world champion in the discipline and bronze medalist at the keirin of the Olympic Games in Tokyo, took second place ahead of his compatriot Jeffrey Hoogland.
It was the second podium of the day for Lavreysen who had won the sprint final just an hour earlier. All of this allowed him to take the lead in the cumulative ranking of the men’s sprint events with 37 points.
Stefan Botticher (33 points) is second, while Jeffrey Hoogland (30 points) completes the top-3. Hugo Barrette occupies the 10e row with a total of 11 stitches.
Genest narrowly misses the final
PHOTO CHRISTIAN HARTMANN, REUTERS ARCHIVES
Lauriane Genest
On the women’s side, Lauriane Genest had her best moments of the sprint competition. After finishing first in her start in qualifying, the Lévisienne set off in a strong wave during the semi-finals.
Despite a good effort, the representative of the maple leaf had to settle for second place behind the German Emma Hinze. The reigning world champion in the sprint then defeated her compatriot Lea Friedrich to win this event.
Crowned in the keirin a little earlier, Kelsey Mitchell also saw her journey come to an end in the semi-finals. The Albertan completed her day with 35 points, two less than Hinze, who sits atop the overall standings in the women’s speed events.
Bleached in keirin, Lauriane Genest for her part amassed 13 points in the sprint, which places her provisionally ninth.
The Champions League will run until December 11 and will have a total of five stages. The next stop will be in Lithuania, more precisely in Panevėžys, on November 27.