Track Cycling World Cup gold medallists returned to find their Derby home had been broken into

Welcome home. Returning from Belarus having secured gold in the team pursuit at the UCI Track Cycling World Cup, Team KGF discovered that the Derby house they share had been broken into.

"It really put a downer on the weekend,” said Charlie Tanfield, who also won gold in the individual pursuit. “But luckily there wasn't that much damage. Nothing much was stolen. It was just turned upside down.

"In the grand scheme of things, we realised what we had just done was great so we just tried to look at the positives."

Only went a won a bloody World Cup! Madness Season goals ticked off. Huge thanks to every single person who has helped out along the way mission accomplished, just the nationals to go! https://t.co/SGi0BkJCu1

— Dan Bigham (@DanBiggles22) January 21, 2018

Team KGF were already the national team pursuit champions, but in November said they were using the Track World Cup to ‘get noticed’.

Competing on an annual budget of £15,000, they have surely managed that – and they are again performing well in the national championships.

What a gold-medal final it will be.

An all @TeamKGF affair.

Defending champion @DanBiggles22 v in-form @CharlieTanfield! #TrackChamps pic.twitter.com/pBVlNuVjKJ

— British Cycling (@BritishCycling) January 26, 2018

Great Britain head coach Iain Dyer has said that he wants to take a closer look at Tanfield and Dan Bigham, and they’ve also attracted attention for their team pursuit tactics where riders lead for turns of up to five laps.

"We're a group of mates from around the country who decided to do the team pursuit one year at nationals," Tanfield told the BBC.

"I get by on my student loan. Most of it comes out of our own back pocket, which is a small sacrifice to pay. We're open-minded to do new things and it just shows that it has come off and we've achieved something pretty cool."

Tanfield apparently also has designs on the hour record.

“It's something I've always wanted to do and I'm sure I'll attempt it," he said. "I'd have to add on a few more watts and improve my posture on the bike."

His time in the final of the individual pursuit was 1.7 seconds outside the world record of 4 minutes 10.534 seconds set by Australia's Jack Bobridge in Sydney in 2011 and second only to Chris Boardman among Britons.

Pondering his hour hopes, he added: "Let's just say, if we go to altitude, we can go quite fast."