Ireland's Kay fights on after huge crash wipes out omnium riders | Video | Sticky Bottle

*Emily Kay of Ireland was in a great position just approaching the final lap of the scratch race before being taken down in the second of two crashes, one immediately after the other*

Ireland's Emily Kay showed no small amount of grit during her Olympic omnium ride today when she battled on after being taken out in a large crash that decimated the field.

Kay, who had ridden the madison with Shannon McCurley earlier at these Games, appeared to be taken out by one of the Italian riders. And once they fell on the track, it caused a mass pile-up across the bunch.

Kay was among the victims of the second of two bad crashes in the opening scratch race, with a commissaire even caught up in one of the incidents. Of the 21 riders who went into that race, nine of them were non finishers due to the crashes.

Kay was among them, as was the highly fancied Laura Kenny (Great Britain), who had already won gold in Tokyo. Both crashes occurred within a lap of each other just before the bell was sounded for the final lap.

Maximum points in that opening scratch race were taken by Jennifer Valente (United States Of America), the eventual winner of the gold medal.

Lara Gillespie attacks Dolomite stage as Giro hits high mountains

Video - Ireland's Meehan climbs with best on brutal Alpine terrain

Kay dusted herself down after that first race crash and went on to place 13th in the tempo race; gaining a point at one of the sprints but then losing one lap and 20 points; that race won by Team GB's Kenny.

Irish rider Kay went on to place 9th in the elimination race, won by Clara Copponi (France). And after the final event of the four races that make up the omnium, the points race, Kay ended the competition in 13th place on 56 points.

The gold went to Valente on 124 points, with Japan's Yumi Kajihara claiming the silver on 110 points. Kirsten Wild (Netherlands) prevailed in the fight for bronze over Amalie Dideriksen of Denmark; Wild scoring 108 points and Dideriksen 103.

While Kay was hit by that crash in the opening race, the incidents did not end there, with some of the well placed riders falling in the points race at the conclusion of the competition.

Among the fallers in that final event were eventual gold and silver medal winners Valente and Kajihara, though both managed to get up off the deck, rejoin the racing and hold their positions.

Kay's outing in the omnium in the early hours of this morning concluded the Irish cyclists' involvement in these Games.