Olympic cycling: American Jennifer Valente wins women's omnium

Field Level Media|published: Sun 11th August, 09:47 2024

Aug 7, 2024; Montigny-le-Bretonneux, France; Jennifer Valente of Team United States competes in the first round of the women’s team pursuit during the Paris 2024 Olympic Summer Games at Vélodrome National de Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines. Mandatory Credit: Andrew P. Scott-USA TODAY Sports

SAINT QUENTIN-EN-YVELINES, France -- American Jennifer Valente won the gold medal in the women's omnium to conclude Olympic racing at the National Velodrome on Sunday.

Valente comfortably retained the title she won in Tokyo with a consistent performance across the four races.

Poland's Daria Pikulik ended with silver medal and New Zealand's Ally Wollaston was third.

Valente was part of the American squad to win the team pursuit earlier in the week, giving her two gold medals in the Paris Games.

MEN'S KEIRIN

Flying Dutchman Harrie Lavreysen confirmed his status as the king of men's sprinting by winning the Olympic keirin to complete a remarkable hat trick.

Lavreysen flew around the final corner to beat Australia's Matthew Richardson, who took the silver.

The 27-year-old powerhouse also won the team sprint and sprint earlier in a great week for the Dutch, repeating his feat from Tokyo, where he could only manage a bronze in the keirin.

Australia's Matthew Glaetzer was third.

The race finale was somewhat overshadowed by a high-speed crash involving Malaysia's Muhammad Shah Firdaus Sahrom, Japan's Shinji Nakano and Britain's Jack Carlin, who were sent tumbling across the track.

Sahrom slid over the line but was relegated for causing the accident. All three managed to walk away after treatment.

WOMEN'S SPRINT GOLD

New Zealand's Ellesse Andrews and completed an incredible week by winning the sprint gold.

Andrews outclassed Germany's Lea Freidrich in the final, winning 2-0, to become the first woman from New Zealand to win the discipline at the Olympics, having also won the keirin and finishing with the silver medal in the team sprint.

"Honestly, this has exceeded all my expectations," Andrews, whose keirin gold on Thursday was the first Olympics track title in 20 years for New Zealand, told Eurosport.

"I knew what my strengths were and put it out there."

Britain's sprint world champion Emma Finucane beat Dutch rider Hetty van de Wouw to take the bronze -- the 21-year-old Briton's third medal from her first Games.

--Field Level Media

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