Team USA’s Jennifer Valente reigned supreme in the women’s omnium, stamping her authority on track cycling’s test of endurance and race strategy on Sunday, 11 August at the Olympic Games Paris 2024.
The six-time world champion successfully defended the gold medal she won at the Tokyo 2020, becoming the second female rider to win back-to-back gold medals in the omnium at the Olympic Games after Great Britain’s Laura Kenny.
“It has been a really long week of racing,” said Valente. “I raced [team pursuit] qualifying over a week ago, and we had some really good performances, so to pull it off on the last day, I’m really excited.”
Valente was in dominant form winning both the scratch race and elimination race, and finishing runner-up in the tempo race to place her atop the points standings heading into the points race.
“I definitely went into a points race looking at the couple of people that were trailing me and the points gap,” said Valente. “It did drop a little bit once you get farther down the start list of the points race, and I was pretty happy to let some other people take points and try to just let the race evolve.”
She rode a confident and strategically defensive points race, lapping the field to solidify her lead in the omnium. She crossed the line with 144 points to her name, more than enough to defend her gold medal from Tokyo 2020.
“You’re always fearful of the possibility that someone could just make a jump at the last minute and take it away from you,” said Valente. “It is certainly not over until it’s all the way over and bunch racing can be so unpredictable.”
She voiced her love for track cycling, adding: “The track is so unique. It’s so fast, there are so many things happening. The feeling that you get, going as hard as you can into a bend, and you can feel yourself being pushed against the track. That’s probably what I love the most.”
Poland’s Daria Pikulik was also feeling the love when it came to track cycling, especially after she claimed her nation’s first track cycling medal since Munich 1972.
“I’m super happy. I never knew how this would feel, I still don’t know what’s happening,” said a surprised Pikulik.
She overcame less than ideal performances in the scratch race and elimination race to snag the silver medal with a phenomenal performance in the points race, adding 59 points to her total between laps taken and sprints won. She finished the omnium with 131 points.
“I know that the points race was always my good side,” said Pikulik. “I was the junior world champion in the point race. So I know how to race this race. My legs were incredible.”
New Zealand’s Ally Wollaston also delivered an incredible ride in the points race to claim the bronze medal with a total of 125 points in the omnium.
“I actually didn’t even know that I was in the bronze medal competition until maybe 10 laps to go,” said the bronze medalist. “I heard my name and I looked up on the board. It was the first time I looked up and thought, ‘Oh my God, yeah’.”
She joined Pikulik and Valente on the final track cycling podium of Paris 2024.
Source link : https://olympics.com/en/news/paris-2024-cycling-track-jennifer-valente-defends-womens-omnium-olympic-title
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Publish date : 2024-08-11 19:23:33
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