RaboPlus New Zealand Track Cycling Championships – Day 1 Wrap

Southland star Eddie Dawkins smashed his New Zealand with a world class performance to highlight the opening night of the RaboPlus New Zealand Track Cycling Championships in Invercargill tonight.

Dawkins, 20, clocked 1:01.524 to win the men’s 1000m time trial, taking 6/10ths of a second off the national record he set a year ago.

His time was among the fastest in the world this year, bettered by only two riders in UCI World Cup events this year.

World pursuit champion Alison Shanks showed she also has plenty of speed when she took out the 500m time trial when she edged national sprint champion Natasha Hansen (Canterbury) with a superb ride.

Dawkins, who won the sprint honours at the recent Beijing World Cup, produced a stunning performance tonight to thrill the home crowd.

It was a performance that Dawkins has been chasing.

“I haven’t ridden that well for a year and so I really wanted to pull out a big ride tonight, especially in front of the home crowd,” Dawkins said.

“The training has been going really well. And I was really pleased with the performance in Beijing.

“I thought I might not have to do the kilo anymore but I guess after this they will want me to,” Dawkins joked.

He has set his sights on the upcoming world championships and selection to the Commonwealth Games.

“Anything is possible. 1:01 at the age of 20 is not bad. It was pretty pleasing and encouraging.”

While she’s currently the world’s best in the endurance event, Shanks gained real satisfaction from taking out the raw sprint event.

“After all the endurance mileage we were unsure where my top end was at, and it’s good to know we still have some. I am really rapt in that,” Shanks said.

“I am now looking to top up the raw power and strength now.  It’s great to be able to race, even the mentality of getting out on the start line and sitting in the start gates.

“I was stoked with the win. It backs up the win I got in this event last year. It shows it wasn’t a fluke.

“We can just build on this now. We have plenty of time until the big one in Copenhagen and it’s pretty satisfying to know that there’s some useful speed to start with.”

Hansen led Shanks through the halfway point by half a second but the world champion sued her strength to come home in 36.108s, with her Canterbury opponent 2/10ths of a second behind.

Levin teenager Gemma Dudley, who won four medals in the world junior championships two years ago, finished third as the only other rider under 37 seconds, while renowned road rider Jo Kiesanowski (Canterbury) showed impressive speed to finish fourth.

It was also the first event in the five-event omnium, which will become an Olympic discipline for London 2012.

Earlier Christchurch sprinter Adam Stewart grabbed his first individual title with he took out the 250m time trial, held for the first time as a test event.

The Christchurch rider clocked 18.171 for the standing one lap to edge out Auckland teenager Ethan Mitchell by 3/100ths of a second. 

Hansen took out the women’s final in 20.800 to edge out Otago’s Katie Schofield by 3/100ths of a second, going on to win her second medal in the 500m time trial in the evening.

Tomorrow’s racing features the keirin, individual pursuit and points race for both men and women.

Results:

Women’s 250m time trial, qualifying:  Natasha Hansen (Canterbury) 20.848, 1; Katie Schofield (Otago) 21.160, 2; Hannah Latta (Wellington) 21.498, 3; Tiffany Parry (Auckland) 23.066, 4.

Gold ride-off: Hansen 20.800, 1; Schofield 21.100, 2. Bronze ride-off: Latta 21.494, 3; Parry 22.837, 4.

Qualifying: Ethan Mitchell (Auckland) 18.256, 1; Adam Stewart (Canterbury) 18.290, 2; Eddie Dawkins (Southland) 18.310, 3; Matthew Archbold (Otago) 18.812, 4.

Gold ride-off: Stewart  18.171, 1; Mitchell 18.025, 2. Bronze ride-off: Dawkins 18.814, 3; Archbold 18.845, 4.

500m time trial, women: Alison Shanks (Otago) 36.108, 1; Natasha Hansen (Canterbury) 36.405, 2; Gemma Dudley (WCNI) 36.916, 3.

1000m time trial, women: Eddie Dawkins 1:01.524, 1; Wes Gough (ECNI) 1:03.827, 2; Peter Latham (Waikato Bay of Plenty) 1:04.889, 3.