Team Britain took a sweet revenge on France after beating their arch rivals to win the men's cycling team sprint at the Olympic Games in Beijing on Friday.
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Chris Hoy (C), Jason Kenny (R) and Jamie Staff, cyclists of the British team, celebrate during the awarding ceremony of the men’s team sprint of the Beijing 2008 Olympic cycling-track event at the Laoshan Velodrome in Beijing, China, Aug. 15, 2008. The team of Great Britain ranked first in the finals 1-2 with a total time of 43.128 seconds and won the gold medal of the event. [Zhang Duo/Xinhua] |
The British trios cooperated well to clock 43.128 for the gold, France, who defeated Britain three times in the finals of the last three world championships, took the silver in 43.651.
"As part of the team, to win the gold is a totally different feeling. Our friendship's been so dominant in the last few years, you can't let anyone down," Britain's Christian Hoy said.
"We have given our best, and I have nothing to regret. We appreciate the medal. I hope we can have some better performances, but I'm happy to work with this," said Frenchman Arnaud Tournant, who hoped they can race against and win their British rival next time.
Hoy, who became world sprint champion for the first time on home soil this March, played a leading role in earning Britain the title.
"To beat them by half a second made it that exciting. Honestly, it took every inch of effort in beating the French who have been invincible," Hoy said. "The French have been so dominant. To beat us by such a big margin at Manchester (at the world championships in March), I thought it would be difficult (in Beijing)."
Dashing out with an amazing speed of 62.604 kilometers per hour, Hoy led his British trios to a super performance, taking the first track cycling gold of the Beijing Games.
"We have really put all the pieces of the jigsaw together. We really focused on the details," added Hoy.
"It is a perfect start. Getting the start today should bring in total confidence to the entire camp," said David Brailsford, coach of Britain.
At Manchester, the hosts claimed a stunning 11 of the 54 medals, including nine golds.
"There are 10 races, you want to try to win every one," added Brailsford.
Germany clocked 44.014 to beat Australia, which timed 44.022, for the bronze medal.
(Xinhua News Agency August 15, 2008)