Akil Campbell concludes tough World Cycling Champs debut

ENDURANCE CYCLIST Akil Campbell concluded his Track Cycling World Championships debut with a 17th place finish in the men’s elimination race in Roubaix, France on Sunday.

Campbell was eliminated in the opening laps of the race as Italian Elia Vivian, Portuguese Iuri Leitao and Russian Cycling Federation Donovan Grondin were the top three finishers respectively.

The Trinidad and Tobago cyclist also placed 23rd in the men’s omnium on Saturday. He finished tied after not completing the points race, which was the final race of the omnium.

However, the highlight for team TT at the World Championships was the immense effort by Nicholas Paul to secure a historic silver medal in the men’s one kilometre time trial on Friday.

In the process, Paul ended a 30-year Worlds’ medal drought for TT since veteran Gene Samuel’s bronze medal performance in the same event back in 1991.

The 23-year-old sprinter powered to the line in 59.791 seconds after completing four laps around the Jean-Stablinski Velodrome.

Winning gold in the 1km time trial was Dutchman Jeffrey Hoogland in 58.418 and grabbing bronze was German Joachim Eilers in 1:00.008.

In 1967, cyclist Roger Gibbon created history by earning TT’s first medal at a World Track Cycling Championship – bronze in the 1km time trial. Twenty-four years later, Samuel repeated the feat.

Additionally, Paul contested the men’s sprint and keirin events where he just missed out medalling in both events.

In the keirin on Friday, the Gasparillo native settled for a credible fourth. He finished behind winner Harrie Lavreysen of Netherlands, who clocked 10.027. Lavreysen’s compatriot Jeffrey Hoogland earned silver while Russian Federation’s Mikhail Iakovlev held on to bronze.

And in the sprint final on Saturday, Paul was eliminated in the quarlter-final by German Stefan Boetticher. The TT rider won the first ride by a convincing margin but Boetticher bounced back strongly to capture the following two races to advance.

In the opening round of men’s sprint qualifying, the men’s flying 200m world record holder made an early statement by finishing with the second fastest time of 9.421 seconds. Only Lavreysen (9.418) produced a faster time.

The two-man TT cycling team was joined by coach/mechanic Elisha Greene.