European Track Championships Day Three - GB clinch one-two in men's keirin

Jason Kenny and Matt Crampton made it a British one-two in the men’s keirin on the closing day of the European Track Championships in Pruszkow this evening, Kenny’s victory giving the country its third gold medal of the event.

The pair had slotted into third and fourth place in the line behind the derny rider in the final, in which they faced stiff competition from the French pairing of Michael d’Almeida and Francois Pervis.

Once the derny peeled off, Crampton sprinted to the front of the race, taking Kenny with him, and although approaching the bell there were fears that the British pair may have gone too early, those proved unfounded as they fought out the first two places between themselves, the Czech rider Adam Ptacnik holding off d’Almeida to take bronze.

There were no medals for Great Britain in the women’s version of the event, however, Olga Panarina of Belarus taking the win by half a wheel’s length from World Champion Simon Krupeckaite of Lithuania, with Victoria Pendleton, who started the race at the back of the field, leaving herself too much to do and finishing fifth.

There was a disappointing end to the championships for Britain’s Jess Varnish in the minor final to decide the 7th to 12th positions, her bike flipping over beneath her after she clipped the wheel of the Russian rider, Ekaterina Gnidenk, who remained upright and eventually finished second to Germany’s Kristina Vogel.

The men’s Madison, the only event featured in this weekend’s championships that will ot be on the London 2012 programme, saw Czech Republic 2 win gold from Belgium 2, with Ukraine 1 taking bronze following an entertaining race.

The final events of the championship saw the medals decided in both the men’s and women’s Omnium, the six-race competition that will feature in the London 2012 Olympics.

In the 500 metre sprint that rounded off the women’s Omnium, Laura Trott got off to a flying start in her heat against the Czech rider Jarmila Machachova , completing the distance 2.315 seconds ahead of her opponent in a time of 36.348, the third fastest in the event, but she remained in fourth position overall.

Frustratingly for the British rider, that left her just two points behind bronze medallist Malgorzata Wojtyrav of Poland, while Spain’s Leire Olaberria won gold from the Belarus rider, Tatsiana Sharakova.

The final event of the men’s Omnium was the Kilo, and the penultimate heat saw Britain’s Ed Clancy go head to head with the Dutch rider Tim Veldt. Despite an apparently hesitant start, Clancy flew round the first lap and established a lead over the Netherlands rider he never looked like relinquishing.

Clancy’s time of 1:02:690 turned out to be the fastest posted in the Kilo this evening, while Veldt’s was second quickest.

There was frustration for the British rider though as he missed out on a bronze medal by just one point as Poland’s Rafal Ratajczyk, going off in the last pairing, managed to limit his losses, ceding silver to Veldt but holding on to bronze. Gold went to Germany’s Roger Kluge.

With three golds, two silvers and two bronzes, Great Britain comfortably topped the medal table following the three days of competition, with only France, with two golds and two silvers, winning more than one event.

Full results can be found on the European Track Championships 2010 website.