Story highlights
GB team sprint squad win gold in world record time at Olympic Velodrome
Chris Hoy brings them home for his fifth Olympic gold medal
Disqualifications for GB and China in women's team sprint
German pair Miriam Welte and Kristina Vogel take gold
Chris Hoy won a record equaling fifth Olympic gold medal as he anchored Britain’s team sprint trio to a new world record in the velodrome Thursday.
Hoy’s gold saw him draw level with rower Steve Redgrave in the all-time British list and capped a superb day for the hosts.
But there was disappointment for the partisan home crowd in the women’s team sprint as the British pair of Victoria Pendleton and Jess Varnish were disqualified for a handover infringement after qualifying for the gold medal match against China.
Jeers rang around the 6,000 seater velodrome when the decision was relayed, promoting German pair Miriam Welte and Kristina Vogel to the final.
Pendleton, looking to cap her career with gold, tried her best to put on a brave face.
“It’s one of those things that happens. It’s quicker than a blink of an eye,” she told BBC Sport. “You have to stick by the rules. The rules are there to make it a fair sport.”
Chinese pair Gong Jinjie and Guo Shuang had broken the world record twice in the first two rounds and crossed the line first against the Germans in a time of 32.619 seconds.
Inside the London Olympics Velodrome
But they too then fell foul of the strict officials for their handover and were demoted to silver. Australia’s Anna Meares and Kaarle McCulloch (32.727) claimed bronze ahead of Ukraine.
Hoy and his teammates Philip Hindes and Jason Kenny had fallen foul of the handover rule at the world championships earlier this year, but made no mistake this time in the final against France.
A superb lead off leg by 19-year-old German born Hindes set up Kenny then Hoy to bring them home in 42.600 seconds, beating the earlier world record of 42.747 they had set earlier in qualifying.
Germany beat Australia for the bronze.
Hoy has won a total of sixth Olympic medals, one shy of fellow cyclist Bradley Wiggins, who set a British record by winning Wednesday’s men’s time trial.
Scot Hoy can draw level with Wiggins if he medals in the men’s keirin event later in the program.
“It is quite overwhelming,” he told BBC Sport.
“That last ride I dug deeper than I have ever dug before. I didn’t want to let the boys down, they have been riding so well today.
“You can’t overstate what it means to us in front of our home crowd.”
GB, who dominated the track cycling in the 2008 Beijing Games, look set for more gold in the men’s team pursuit after the quartet of Ed Clancy, Steven Burke, Geraint Thomas and Peter Kennaugh broke their own world record in qualifying.
They clocked three minutes 52.499 seconds while closest rival Australia with Jack Bobridge, Glenn O’Shea, Rohan Dennis and Michael Hepburn were over three seconds adrift in going through second fastest.