Back in the saddle, back in London and back on the podium. The only unknown to Dame Laura Kenny was the color of the medal that hung around her neck.
Kenny spoke this week about the ‘déjà vu’ she felt when she returned to the stage of her double Olympic glory 10 years ago. Well, the memories of London 2012 are sure to come flooding back when the home crowd heard her roar in the women’s team pursuit.
The big difference this time around was the fans cheering on Kenny in a battle for bronze, a hue never normally associated with cycling’s golden girl.
ON THE Podium: Australia took gold, New Zealand finished second and England third
Laura Kenny Celebrates Success With Teammates Josie Knight, Maddie Leech & Sophie Lewis
But for the 30-year-old it mattered little, as her real achievement was to even compete in these Commonwealth Games, given everything she’s been through in recent months.
At the beginning of this year, she was at “breaking point” and contemplating her future in the sport. She had just had emergency surgery to remove a fallopian tube due to an ectopic pregnancy, just weeks after she also had a miscarriage.
But Kenny doesn’t give up and instead she grabbed her ‘safety blanket’ and got back on the bike. She did that with moments like Friday in mind.
After finishing behind Australia and New Zealand in the morning qualifying, the England team of Kenny, Josie Knight, Maddie Leech and Sophie Lewis met Wales in the bronze medal race.
Kenny and England won the bronze medal in the women’s 4000m team pursuit against Wales
And Kenny, despite later claiming she was the ‘weak link’, put the style in the closing laps to take home only the second Commonwealth medal of her glittering career, before capturing the acclaim of her adoring audience. recorded.
“I just love being back here. I have so many fond memories of it,” Kenny said, laughing at the fact that her four-year-old son Albie spent the day at the London Transport Museum instead of looking at Mama.
“Honestly, I didn’t think I’d be here. If the circumstances had been different, I wouldn’t have been. So to be able to play a part for these girls is amazing.
“When I stepped onto the starting line, I was a whole bag of nerves. It could have been a gold medal in the Olympics.
England triumphed over Wales by almost two seconds into the third place match
“I’ve never felt so much pressure to win a bronze medal in my entire career. Just because we have a young team and I wanted to help them win and get a taste of the medals I’ve had in the past.
“I think I was the weak link, but I guess that’s fine. At some point you have to pass it on to the next generation.’
That next generation was still in school when Kenny made his name at this Stratford track ten years ago. “We sat on our benches and wanted to be the next Laura Kenny,” admitted Knight, who at 25 is a relative veteran compared to Lewis and Leech, 19, 20.
Indeed, those riders are inspired by their older teammate to this day. “She’s the strongest person I know,” Knight added.
“A week after one of her biggest problems, she was at a Zoom meeting with us and pretended nothing had happened. She is the ultimate team player.’
New Zealand defeated Team England in the final of the men’s 4000m pursuit and took gold in London
Another sign of the times for Kenny – who claims her chances in Sunday’s points race and Monday’s scratch are ‘not too great’ – was that she was helped on her bike at the start by her retired seven-time Olympic champion husband Jason. .
He is here at work as England coach and his riders Ryan Owens, Hamish Turnbull and Joe Truman took silver in the team sprint in the men’s behind Australia.
The hosts took a second silver on the track in the men’s team pursuit on Friday, with Dan Bigham, Charlie Tanfield, Ethan Vernon and Ollie Wood losing the gold medal race to New Zealand.
Previously, Neil Fachie won a record equal fifth gold for Scotland – and their first at the Games – in the men’s tandem time trial, ahead of James Ball of Wales and Stephen Bate of England.