Track Worlds Day 2: GB's women match men in team pursuit, beating world record and the Aussies

Great Britain's women's team pursuit squad has today emulated the men's team's performance yesterday at the UCI Track World Championships in Melbourne, setting a new world record in qualifying and again when beating Australia in the final.

The host nation, represented by Anette Edmodson, Melissa Hoskins and Josephine Tomic, went out very quickly in the final - too quickly, as it turned out - and with a third of the 3km race gone had built up a lead of 1.398 seconds. The British trio of Joanna Rowsell, Dani King and Laura Trott continued riding to their own schedule, however, refusing to be panicked, and started to slowly reel the Australians in.

With a kilometre left, Australia still led by more than eight tenths of a second, but in the final four laps they paid the price for their earlier endeavours, and as the bell rang to signify the last lap, the only issue remaining to be decided was whether Great Britain would beat the world record of 3:16:850 they had set earlier on today in qualifying, 0.203 of a second quicker than the time Australia had set just 15 minutes earlier.

They did so in style, coming home in a time of 3:15:720, and in doing so retained the one title that Great Britain had won in the Netherlands 12 months ago. Already, with just one medal decided so far on the secod day of the four day championship, the country leads the medal table with three golds.

Other events that will be decided today are the women's points race and the men's kilo, while Ed Clancy will begin hsi bid to win back his world title in the Omnium that he won in 2010. The programme also sees the qualifiying rounds for the women's sprint.