The Irish pair of Lydia Boylan and Lydia Gurley finished sixth in the Women’s Madison at the UCI Track Cycling World Cup in Glasgow yesterday evening. The duo picked up seven points in the event that was introduced to the international race calendar in a measure to bring gender equity to the number of championship events. Great Britain were the eventual winners, pipping second placed France in the closing stages of the 80-lap race.
The other Irish rider competing yesterday – Eoin Mullen – finished 17th in the Men’s Keirin, having finished 3rd in his repechage, with just the top rider progressing.
The Women’s Madison was 80 laps or 20 kilometres in length with a sprint lap every tenth lap. The two Lydias raced well from the start, picking up the maximum five points in winning the second sprint, following that with more points later in the race.
Ireland moved into second place early in the race, behind France, and slipped down to sixth by the final lap in a race which saw a phenomenal finish by GB, winning four of the following sprints.
This is the first World Cup on the calendar and takes place in the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome in Glasgow from the 4-6 November.
Today is a busier day on the track for the Irish team, with Marc Potts making his World Cup debut, competing in the Individual Pursuit, along with the Women’s Sprint Team of Robyn Stewart and Eimear Moran. The two Lydias are back in action with Boylan competing in the Omnium and Gurley in the Scratch Race.
Well done Lydia and Lydia