TT's Paul is world's fourth best sprint cyclist

NICHOLAS Paul achieved yet another proud feat for TT when he became the first national cyclist to close their season ranked as high as fourth in the International Cycling Union's (ICU) men's sprint standings, taking over for some of the world's best known and accomplished cyclists.

The updated standings were released by UCI.

"I want to give thanks to God because without him this couldn't be possible. I want to thank him for health and strength," Paul said today when contacted by Newsday.

The 21-year-old's recent sprint successes at the final three stages of the UCI World Cup in Berlin (11th), London (fifth) and Hong Kong (sixth), along with his huge eighth-place finish at the 2019 UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Poland, all contributed to his continued movement up the standings.

The soft-spoken Paul also credited those closest to him for his progress, saying, "I would like to thank my supporters, my family, friends and my coaches. Being fourth in the world is a big achievement for me and I'm just happy with that. I'm happy to press on with my cycling, and I'm hoping that we can make cycling a bigger sport in Trinidad and Tobago."

There was also considerable movement for the sprint team who moved to ninth place, and for Paul's team-mates Njisane Phillip ­– now ranked 27th in the sprint – and Kwesi Browne, who moved from 19th to 12th in the men's keirin.

Browne placed 12th overall World Championships, while the team sprint placed 11th.