[UPDATED] Paul captures UCI Nations Cup sprint bronze

Trinidad and Tobago sprint sensation Nicholas Paul continues to deliver on the global stage, and he grabbed a bronze medal in the midst of a competitive field in the men’s sprint event at the 2024 Tissot UCI Track Cycling Nations Cup in Milton, Canada on April 14.

Paul, who grabbed gold medals in the keirin and sprint events at the Pan American Track Cycling Championships in Los Angeles last weekend, shook off the disappointment of a fourth-place finish in the keirin at the Nations Cup on Saturday, by going one better in his pet event.

Paul finished with the fourth-fastest time in the qualifying round, and he then went to speed past the challenges from Hungary’s Sandor Szalontay and France’s Rayan Helal in the 1/8 finals and the quarterfinal stages respectively.

In the semifinal ride, Paul came up against reigning Olympic sprint champion and 13-time World Champion Harrie Lavreysen. On Saturday, Lavreysen displayed his dominance when he led a Dutch one-two finish in the keirin event at the Nations Cup. In his semifinal matchup with Paul. Lavreysen again showed his class as he defied Paul despite the TT cyclist’s world renowned sprinting speed and power.

Paul fell in two straight rides to Lavreysen, but the reigning Pan American sprint champion dusted himself off for the bronze medal ride as he defeated Israel’s Mikhail Yakovlev in consecutive races to secure his spot on the podium.

In the gold medal race, Lavreysen sent a clear warning to all of his competitors ahead of this year’s Paris Olympics when he beat Suriname’s Jair Tjon En Fa in back-to-back rides to be crowned sprint champion.

Paul’s TT teammate, Kwesi Browne, was ousted at the 1/16 finals stage in the sprint event.

On Saturday, Paul narrowly missed out on a podium finish at the Mattamy National Cycling Centre when he finished fourth in the keirin final. Lavreysen’s Dutch teammate Jeffrey Hoogland took second spot in the keirin, while Britain’s Jack Carlin edged Paul to the line in an exciting race for the bronze medal.

Lavreysen and Hoogland also tasted Nations Cup gold in the team sprint when they edged Britain to the top spot on Friday.

Browne, who cycled to keirin bronze at the Pan Am Track Cycling Championships in Los Angeles, finished eighth in the keirin and just missed out on the opportunity to contest for a medal in the Nations Cup final.

Also on Saturday, TT’s endurance rider Akil Campbell finished 19th in a field of 23 cyclists after accumulating a total of 39 points in the men’s omnium. Britain’s Edward Hayter (163 points) took the top spot in the omnium, edging Japan’s Kazushige Kuboki (150 points) and France’s Benjamin Thomas (143 points) into second and third spots respectively.

This story was originally published with the title "Paul pipped to keirin medal at UCI Nations Cup" and has been adjusted to include additional details. See original post below.

TRINIDAD and Tobago sprint sensation Nicholas Paul narrowly missed out on a podium spot in the men's keirin event at the 2024 Tissot UCI Track Cycling Nations Cup in Milton, Canada on April 13, when he placed fourth in a keenly contested final.

Paul, who grabbed gold medals in the keirin and sprint events at the Pan American Track Cycling Championships in Los Angeles last weekend, made a strong case for another spot among the medals when he won both his first-round and second-round heats in convincing fashion at the Mattamy National Cycling Centre.

In his second-round heat, Paul utilised his powerful sprinting speed with about two laps to go as he surged ahead of the field to take the top spot – edging Holland's Harrie Lavreysen and Britain's Jack Carlin into second and third spots respectively.

In the final, Lavreysen, who won Olympic gold in the individual and team sprint events at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, turned up the heat on Paul and the chasing pack as he made a telling push to the front of the pack with a couple of laps to go as he stormed to a resounding win. Lavreysen's Dutch teammate Jeffrey Hoogland took second spot, while Carlin pipped Paul to the third spot in an exciting finish for the final medal.

In the final, Paul took a different approach to his second-round ride, as he tried to set the pace in the six-man field. However, he just couldn't match the speed and surge of the 13-time world champion Lavreysen once he made his telling move.

Lavreysen and Hoogland also tasted Nations Cup gold in the team sprint when they edged Britain to the top spot on Friday, and Lavreysen signalled his intentions on claiming a treble of gold medals at this year's Paris Olympics in the individual and team sprints, as well as the keirin event.

Paul's Trinidad and Tobago teammate, Kwesi Browne, who cycled to keirin bronze at the Pan Am Track Cycling Championships in Los Angeles, finished eighth in the keirin and just missed out on the opportunity to contest for a medal in the Nations Cup final.

Also on April 13, Trinidad and Tobago's endurance rider Akil Campbell finished 19th in a field of 23 cyclists after accumulating a total of 39 points in the men's omnium. Britain's Edward Hayter (163 points) took the top spot in the omnium, edging Japan's Kazushige Kuboki (150 points) and France's Benjamin Thomas (143 points) into second and third spots respectively.

In Sunday's morning session, Paul advanced from the men's sprint qualifying round as the fourth-fastest rider, while Browne recorded the 23rd-best time as he also moved on to the next round.

Lavreysen again showcased his prowess as he clocked a time of 9.378 seconds to top all cyclists in the qualifying round.

The sprint event will conclude in the evening session on April 14.