Australian cycling’s governing body, AusCycling, has been forced to remove the handlebars from its track bikes used in the 1000m time trial at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games because they are unsafe for its use
Key points:
- AusCycling released a statement at the same time as competition began at the Commonwealth Games
- Matt Glaetzer won gold, Thomas Cornish silver and Matthew Richardson was fourth despite riding a theoretically slower ride.
- AusCycling came under fire at the Tokyo Olympics when a set of handlebars failed during a race
That didn’t stop Australia’s trio of runners, however, as Matt Glaetzer claimed an impressive gold medal, beating compatriot Tom Cornish by more than half a second to take silver.
It was Glaezer’s fifth Commonwealth Games gold.
Matt Richardson finished fourth behind bronze medalist Nicholas Paul of Trinidad and Tobago.
The Australians’ performance was all the more remarkable given the fact that all three were riding a setup that was theoretically slower than their competitors.
In a statement released just hours before the start of the event, AusCycling said the chase bars used in Monday’s 1,000m event “cannot be safely used” and that drop bars would be used .
The statement said the drop bars would be “marginally slower” but would “tolerate the loads generated during competition”.
“We recognize that this decision has created some disappointment,” said Jesse Korf, AusCycling’s performance manager.
“But the drivers and the wider team understand that safety is our highest priority.”
The drop bars have the same configuration used by racers in power-based sprint events and are placed on either side of and slightly below the handlebars.
Riders are not in as aerodynamic a position as they would be if they were using chase bars.
Pursuit bars are placed in the center and allow the runner to sit with their arms in front, as is the case in track endurance events.
James Moriarty models the pursuit bars in the men’s 4,000m individual medley ahead of the competition. (Getty Images: John Walton/PA Images)
AusCycling came under fire at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo when Alex Porter’s handlebars failed spectacularly in qualifying for the team pursuit.
Porter was traveling at 65km/h when his handlebars suffered a catastrophic failure, then suffered painful facial injuries after crashing head-on onto the track.
An AusCycling report issued after the Tokyo Games found that poor governance was partly to blame for the failure, as the custom-made pursuit handlebars were not properly tested before use.
Porter won a bronze medal in the event alongside Kelland O’Brien, Sam Welsford and Leigh Howard after the team had a second chance to qualify.
“We have made significant changes to procedures, team structure and process since the Tokyo Olympics and this decision reflects a new and comprehensive approach to engineering excellence for long-term, competitive success and the well-being of the athlete,” Korf said.
Questions will be asked about the timing of the announcement, which was made as the day’s session began at London’s Lee Valley VeloPark.
AusCycling said the timing of the decision was a result of having to thoroughly test the equipment and investigate possible alternatives.
The Lee Valley Velodrome has seen its fair share of devastating crashes in this competition. (Getty Images/PA Images: John Walton)
Track cycling events at the Lee Valley Velodrome have already been marred by a series of dramatic crashes.
England’s Matt Walls was thrown into the crowd after a horrific crash in qualifying for the men’s scratch race.
The day before, Glaetzer was able to walk away from an equally brutal collision in the Keirin that left his English opponent Joe Truman sliding face down down the track, unconscious.
The 1,000m time trial is a non-Olympic event, but will be contested at the World Championships in France later this year.
AusCycling said it would work with Argon 18, which makes the equipment, to ensure there would be no problems.