BALLERUP: Dutch cyclist Harrie Lavreysen on Wednesday won his 14th world championship track title with victory in the team sprint event, equalling the all-time record of Frenchman Arnaud Tournant.

The 27-year-old, a five-time Olympic champion, will have several opportunities between now and the end of the championships in Denmark to claim the record for himself.

He will compete in the time-trial on Friday and then the individual sprint event on Sunday.

With Jeffrey Hoogland and Roy van den Berg, the Dutch team dominated Australia in Wednesday’s final while Japan beat Britain in the bronze medal match.

Lavreysen now has six team sprint titles, five individual and three keirin titles.

Tournant won nine world titles in team sprint, one in the individual event and four in the time-trial between 1997 and 2008.

Lavreysen has built an incredible track record in five years, including a hat-trick (individual and team sprint, keirin) at the Paris Olympics in August, to become the most successful Dutch athlete in the history of the Summer Games.

In the women’s event, Britain dominated the sprint, bea­ting the Netherlands with Australia claiming the bronze.

Dutch sprinter Lorena Wiebes, who arrived at the championships with 22 wins in 2024, claimed her first world title in the scratch.

Wiebes defeated Jennifer Valente of the United States with New Zealand’s Ally Wollaston taking home the bronze.

Published in Dawn, October 18th, 2024