Cementing his reputation as one of the strongest and most determined track riders in the world, Martyn Irvine has taken his fifth major medal on the world stage with silver in the scratch race at the World Track Championships in Cali, Colombia. Having won scratch gold and pursuit silver at the Worlds in Minsk last year he then went on to take omnium bronze at the Euros in October and UCI World Cup gold in Manchester in November, and all despite 2012 having been largely a write off due to crashes.
By Gerard Cromwell
Defending world champion Martyn Irvine took a fine silver medal for Ireland in the scratch race at the world track championships in Colombia this morning after a gutsy never say die ride saw him lap the field with just eight of the event’s 60 laps remaining.
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Irvine was in the thick of the action from the start, marking a dangerous looking move containing Italian Elia Viviani and Martin Blaha of Czech Republic with 39 laps to go.
Home favourite Jordan Parra rode across two laps later and with British rider Jonathon Dibben making it six up front with 32 laps to go it looked as if the move would stay clear.
The group was reeled in just two laps later however, and as the bunch stalled slightly to recover from the chase, Hong Kong’s King Lok Cheung rode clear and gained a lap on the field, putting him into the gold medal position while Russia’s Ivan Kobalev followed suit shortly after.
Irvine went clear again with 26 laps to go, joining, Viviani, Parra and a Kiwi rider up front but with the group appearing to fade seven laps later, the defending champion went solo in an effort to gain the lap needed to put himself in with a chance of a medal.
Grimacing under the pressure, Irvine caught a couple of back markers with 10 laps to go but still had to make contact with the rear of the peloton to gain the lap.
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He closed to within around 50 metres but then as he slowed a little and the group ahead surged the gap between him and the bunch went out again and it looked as if his efforts may come to nothing.
But he showed the determination and brute force that have now come to characterise his career and simply refused to take no for an answer. It took him another two laps to latch on to the back of the bunch but when he did he was among one of only three riders who had gained a priceless lap meaning the medal winners names were known, it was just their order that was undecided.
While he would have dearly loved to have retained his title, his prolonged solo effort to gain the lap left him unable to contest a final sprint with Kobalev and Cheung for the world title.
Indeed, all three were shattered by the finish. With Kobalev taking gold towards the head of the peloton, an exhausted Irvine finished nearer the rear but in front of the Hong Kong rider for an excellent silver medal.
The silver medal caps a see-saw year for Irvine, who became world champion this time last year, broke his femur shortly after and spent seven months in rehabilitation before taking bronze in the European championships a first ever gold at the UCI Track World Cup and finishing off the season with silver in the scratch race world championships.
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