Track cyclist Ellesse Andrews, already a gold and silver medallist at these Olympics, could hardly have been more impressive in the women’s sprint today.
Andrews, 24, qualified 3rd in the women’s sprint with a sizzling time of 10.108s.
Into the first round proper, she won comfortably from China’s Shanju Bao. There was a 0.312s margin at the end and Andrews was simply too quick.
In the next round, Andrews faced home favourite Taky Kouame of France and the Frenchwoman tried a different tactic. She started like a shot and grabbed the early lead. Andrews had previously proved almost impossible to pass once she got in front.
Andrews stayed calm and going into the last lap lowered the boom. At full pace she had too much strength and speed for Kouame and won by 0.146s to book a spot in tomorrow’s next round.
The other New Zealander in the women’s sprint, Shaane Fulton, also really hit her straps.
Fulton, a team-mate of Andrews in the silver medal-winning sprint relay team earlier in the cycling programme, was 9th in qualifying with a slippery time of 10.281s, a personal best by a significant margin.
In the first round proper, she outmaneuvered Miriam Vece, the well-performed Italian, winning by 0.250s.
Next up she was matched against Hetty van de Wouw, the Dutchwoman who picked up the silver medal behind Andrews in the keirin.
The New Zealander took the lead when it was offered to her and proved extremely difficult to catch. The flying Dutchwoman came through strongly but Fulton conceded nothing. The photo finish result went to the Dutchwoman by 0.002s – too close for the naked eye.
Fulton had one more shot at staying in the sprint competition when she lined up in the repechage against another big name, Canadian Lauriane Genest, a medallist in the keirin three years ago in Tokyo.
The New Zealander took the lead at the start and was never headed, proving far too strong in the sprint.
Fulton said she was rapt with having set a personal best in qualifying. "I had some indication in camp but put it together. I was annoyed with the first ride but very pleased I put that right in the repechage.
"I'm looking forward to joining Ellesse in the next round tomorrow."
Meanwhile New Zealand managed 8th place in a field of 15 in the women’s madison today.
The 120-lap (30km) race was won by Italy with 37 points from Great Britain 31 and the Netherlands 28.
The New Zealand riders, Bryony Botha and Emily Shearman, picked up a couple of points early on and won a sprint (for four points) about 40 laps into the race. But they were stuck on six points for a long time, until they picked up one more point near the end.
The mid-race placing was solid. “It's not an event we targeted, but I was pleased with that result,” Botha said. “Maybe it's something we can build on and target going forward.”
The Netherlands and Italy each earned themselves 20 points by gaining a lap on the field, while Britain dominated the sprints.