Tuesday, october 24nd, 2023.- The first day of track cycling at Santiago 2023 also awarded medals in the male's team sprint, which went to the Canadian team consisting of Tyler Rorke, Nick Wammes, and James Hedgcock. They defeated Colombia (Kevin Quintero, Rubén Murillo, and Carlos Daniel Echeverri) in the final with a time of 43.396 seconds compared to 43.421. Mexico took the bronze.

In the female team sprint competition, Mexico also claimed the top spot, with the team of Jessica Salazar, Juli Paola Verdugo, and Luz Gaxiola completing the course in 47.960 seconds. The silver medal went to the United States with 48.650, and the bronze to Canada, who scored 49.110 points. The local team from Chile finished in sixth place with 51.000.

It's worth noting that in track cycling's team sprint event, two teams of three athletes each participate, and they cover three laps on the track. One team starts from the beginning, and the other team starts from the opposite end.

The first athlete completes the first lap and retires, making way for the second rider who does the same on the second lap. The third rider then provides the time for the team after completing the third lap.

Track cycling is one of the Olympic disciplines with qualifying marks that earn points for the Paris 2024 Olympic ranking.

Written by Manfred Schwager; translated by Rocio Rojas / Photosport
Photo by Andres Pina / Santiago 2023 via Photosport