British men beat Australia on velodrome

Australia's men have finished second to Britain in the team pursuit at the cycling Track World Cup meet in Manchester.

The Australian team at the Track Cycling World Cup in Manchester

Australia finished second in the men's team pursuit at the cycling Track World Cup in Manchester. (AAP)

Great Britain's men won team pursuit gold in the first final of cycling's Track World Cup meet in Manchester a comprehensive defeat of old adversaries Australia.

The British quartet of Ed Clancy, Steven Burke - both London 2012 champions in the event - Andy Tennant and Owain Doull were the only squad to qualify beneath four minutes in the four-man, four-kilometre event and lived up to their billing as favourites by going quicker in the final.

The British won in three minutes 58.552 seconds, with Australia's Luke Davison, Alex Edmondson, Mitchell Mulhern and Miles Scotson second in 3:59.064.

Denmark (4:01.893) were third ahead of Holland (4:03.916).

Australia set off quicker but the British quartet overhauled their rivals at the halfway mark and increased their advantage in the remaining 2km.

Australia shed a rider for the final kilometre, leaving them with the minimum three for the finish, and Britain's four pushed forward, propelled by the familiar partisan din of the Manchester crowd.

Following excursions to London and Glasgow, the British round of the Track World Cup event was returning to Manchester for the first time since February 2011, when Bradley Wiggins was in the victorious team pursuit squad.

Wiggins and Mark Cavendish have expressed an interest in riding the event at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in 2016, but there is plenty of strength in depth in the line-up, as proved by Doull's emergence.


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Source: AAP


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