Ellesse Andrews became the second New Zealander, after Lisa Carrington, to earn Olympic three medals in Paris when she won the women’s sprint in brilliant fashion today.
The Cambridge-based cyclist had already won the keirin gold medal and a silver medal as part of the women’s sprint team.
In today’s sprint racing, Andrews, 24, was virtually untouchable.
In her semi-final she twice outclassed Briton Emma Finucane, the world champion. Andrews simply had too much strength and speed, and timed her closing sprints perfectly.
In the final, the New Zealander faced German Lea Friedrich, who has eight world titles to her name.
It was the same story in the first race with Andrews simply too fast. The German didn’t have the closing speed to match her and it became clear Andrews was on her way to gold.
In the second race of the final, “the superstar sprinter from New Zealand”, as she was described today, turned on the after-burners soon after the bell and whipped around the German and into the lead. She virtually had time to wave to supporters on that last lap, she was so far ahead.
In an event where the winning margin is often hundredths of a second, she won by 0.624s – the German was only halfway down the home straight when Andrews had crossed the line and was raising an arm in triumph.
The sprint gold was Andrews’ fourth Olympic medal – she also won a silver in the keirin in Tokyo when she was only 21. Only four New Zealanders have won more than her four Olympic medals. Andrews’ gold medal was New Zealand’s 10th in Paris.
Andrews said she had exceeded all her expectations in Paris. “To win one medal, let alone three, would have been unbelievable.
“I knew we were in good form coming here, but you never know how everyone else is going. It’s a matter of getting out there and controlling what you can control.”
Andrews said it was particularly special having her father, Jon, in Paris as the team sprint coach.
Ally Wollaston rounded out New Zealand's Paris Olympics by riding a magnificent points race in the multi-event omnium to grab the bronze medal.
She began the final event of the omnium, the points race, in seventh position. After a quiet beginning to the points race, Wollaston came to life over the last half of the journey, lapping the field twice and picking up a steady flow of sprint points, including in the last sprint, which was worth double points.
The omnium was won by American Jennifer Valente with 144 points. Poland's Daria Pikulik was second with 131 and Wollaston slipped into third by virtue of her heroics in the points race, with 125 points.
Wollaston began the omnium with 5th placing of the 22 riders in the scratch race and 9th in the tempo race.
That left the 23-year-old in fifth position going into the elimination race. She began promisingly, but got boxed in and found herself eliminated in mid-race, offering up valuable points. So she slipped into seventh overall with just the points race to follow.
Wollaston's bronze medal was New Zealand's 20th medal in Paris, meaning they equalled their record medal haul from Tokyo three years ago.
In the men’s keirin, Sam Dakin, having reached the quarter-finals through the repechage route, rode well in his first effort today, finishing second to ease into the semi-finals in a race in which world champion Kevin Quintero of Colombia was eliminated.
In the semis Dakin, needing a top three finish to reach the final, could manage only fifth and bowed out of the competition.