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News posted on Monday 7th August, 2023

Day 5 (track): Young Para cyclists shine at Super Worlds

Ben races with Nick behind in the Scratch Race

It was a super day at the Super Worlds for the team’s youngest two Para cyclists Devon Briggs and Ben Westenberg.

Briggs snatches IP bronze

19-year-old Briggs from Cambridge started the day finishing first in the 200m Time Trial with speeds that got him close to a world record. This is not a medal event, but contributes valuable points to the Omnium. Later in the day Briggs built on his success in the bronze final of the Individual Pursuit, taking the medal. Behind for most of the race, the young cyclist clawed back the gap in the final metres of the race, snatching the bronze by just a fifth of a second. A visibly elated Briggs shared:

“I went out there to ride the ride and give it everything. I didn’t know anything about where I was placed until the last lap when (Coach) Damien yelled I was a second down and I just dug deep and managed to pull the second in the lap.”

Briggs, who was born with severe club feet, will proceed to the Road Para cycling races after a rest day. He is looking forward to celebrating with his top supporters – his mum, dad and grandma – at home in Cambridge when it’s all over.

Westenberg wins Scratch silver

Tauranga teen Ben Westenberg showed the C4 cyclists today that he is one to watch out for. Westenberg and teammate Nick Blincoe took a lap on the bunch early in the race, and Westenberg was able to maintain the strong position throughout, to seize silver. Blincoe finished 20th.

18-year-old Westenberg says, “It wasn’t really intentional, but it worked out!”

“It’s my first big international competition, so very different to anything else I’ve ever done. I’ve learned a lot, and… yeah, something to remember. It’s been awesome.”

Westenberg, who has arthrogryposis affecting the joints of his arms, is at Tauranga Boys College.

Paralympians Sarah Ellington and Anna Taylor competed in their 500m Time Trials today in the C2 and C4 classes respectively. Ellington placed 9th, while Taylor narrowly missed the podium with a 4th place finish, just a quarter of a second behind Australia’s Erin Normoyle. Her time of 38.565 was a PB for the Cambridge 31-year-old.

Results

Athlete

Event

Result

Sport Class

DAY 1

Nicole Murray

3Km Individual Pursuit Qualifying

2nd (qualified for gold final) +3.325 + PB

WC5

Anna Taylor

3Km Individual Pursuit Qualifying

 3rd (qualified for bronze final) +7.713 + PB

WC4

Sarah Ellington

3Km Individual Pursuit Qualifying

5th +22.023

WC2

Ben Westenberg

4Km Individual Pursuit Qualifying

5th +7.016 + PB

MC4

Nick Blincoe

4Km Individual Pursuit Qualifying

22nd +37.730

MC4

Devon Briggs

3Km Individual Pursuit Qualifying

4th (qualified for bronze final) +7.416

MC3

DAY 2

Nicole Murray

500m Time Trial Qualifying

3rd +0.998

WC5

Ben Westenberg

200m FS Time Trial

4th +0.962

MC4

Nick Blincoe

200m FS Time Trial

7th +1.232

MC4

Nicole Murray

500m Time Trial Finals

Bronze +0.639

WC5

DAY 3

Sarah Ellington

200m FS Time Trial

9th

WC2

Devon Briggs

 Kilometre Time Trial Qualifying

2nd (qualified for final)

MC3

Nick Blincoe

Kilometre Time Trial Qualifying

15th +6.901

MC4

Ben Westenberg

Kilometre Time Trial Qualifying

9th +4.833

MC4

Devon Briggs

Kilometre Time Trial Finals

 Bronze +0.644

MC3

Anna Taylor

10Km Scratch Final

4th

WC4 

DAY 4

Nicole Murray

200m FS Time Trial

4th

WC5

Nicole Murray

3Km Individual Pursuit Finals

Silver

WC5

Devon Briggs

15Km Scratch Finals

Bronze

MC3

DAY 5

Sarah Ellington

500m Time Trial Qualifying

9th

WC2

Devon Briggs

200m FS Time Trial

1st (non-medal event)

MC3

Anna Taylor

500m Time Trial Qualifying

5th +3.092

WC4

Nick Blincoe

15Km Scratch Finals

20th

MC4

Ben Westenberg

15Km Scratch Finals

Silver

MC4

Anna Taylor

500m Time Trial Finals

4th +2.604

WC4

Devon Briggs

3Km Individual Finals

Bronze

MC3

DAY 6

Anna Taylor

200m FS Time Trial

2nd (non-medal event)

WC4

Anna Taylor

3Km Individual Pursuit Finals

4th

WC4

Nicole Murray

10Km Scratch Finals

4th

WC5

DAY 7

TBC

Team Sprint Qualifying

9th

M/WC1-5

Sarah Ellington

10Km Scratch Final

8th

WC2

OMNIUM

Ben Westenberg

Omnium

Bronze

C4

Nick Blincoe

Omnium

11th

C4

Devon Briggs

Omnium

Bronze

C3

Anna Taylor

Omnium

Gold

C4

Sarah Ellington

Omnium

7th

C2

Nicole Murray

Omnium

Gold

C5

Looking ahead to Day 6

Day 6 will be a busy one for Paralympian #225 Anna Taylor, who will show her speed in the 200 Time Trial early in the day. She will follow that up with the bronze final of the 3km Individual Pursuit later in the day.

Around 7.21am NZST we’ll be treated to Paralympian #222 Nicole Murray’s strategic racing in the 10km Scratch Race. Murray holds the current world title in the Scratch Race.

See the schedule of when the New Zealanders compete. Livestreaming is available for some events, and links to the livestreams are provided on the schedule.

About the World Championships

The UCI Cycling World Championships (opens a new tab) have been dubbed the ‘Super Worlds’. They bring together 13 different World Championships in various cycling disciplines into one massive event in Glasgow, Scotland. The Para cyclists will compete in track events until next Tuesday 8th August. Following that they then contest road events from Wednesday 9th August through to Sunday 13th August.


What do the classifications mean in Para cycling?

  • Classification groups Para cyclists with an eligible impairment into sports classes, according to how much their impairment affects their ability to carry out the fundamental activities in their sport.
  • Para athletes who are able to use a standard bicycle (with approved adaptations) compete in the five sport classes C1-5.
  • Sport class C1 is allocated to athletes with the most severe activity limitation. The sport class C5 is allocated to athletes with minimum impairments.
  • The C1-5 sport classes include athletes with limb deficiency, impaired muscle power or range of motion and impairments affecting co-ordination, such as uncoordinated movements and involuntary movements.

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