Australian Grace Brown has won silver in the women’s time trial at the world road cycling championships in Wollongong.
Key points:
- Brown set the early pace with a time of 44:41.33
- Ellen van Dijk won the world title, with Marlen Reusser finishing third
- Brown’s medal is Australia’s second podium finish in the women’s time trial
Dutch ace Ellen van Dijk won her third world title in the discipline, with Swiss Marlen Reusser taking the bronze.
Brown set a blistering time on Sunday morning over the technical 34.2-kilometre course in and around the town centre.
She was one of the early starters and clocked 44 minutes and 41.33 seconds.
No-one could touch her until van Dijk and Reusser, the last two starters in the field of 45.
Van Dijk and Reusser were quicker than Brown at the first time check, but the Swiss rider faded.
Reusser finished 41.68 seconds off Brown’s time, but van Dijk was 12.79 seconds under it to claim the gold again with 44:28.60.
It is Australia’s second silver medal in the women’s time trial at the world championships, following Anna Wilson in 1999.
Georgia Baker took eighth at her first elite world championships, 1:46.44 behind van Dijk.
Significantly, leading Dutch contender Annemiek van Vleuten finished a whopping 1:34.29 for seventh earlier in the event, confirming Brown had set a medal-contending time.
Brown finished fourth last year at the Olympics and won the time trial at the Commonwealth Games.
Compatriot Luke Plapp will also ride on Sunday, with the men’s time trial to follow in the afternoon.
Vuelta a Espana winner Remco Evenepoel from Belgium, Italian two-time defending world champion Filippo Ganna and two-time Tour de France winner Tadej Pogacar from Slovenia headline the men’s event.
AAP
