By Martyn Herman
BERLIN (Reuters) – Elinor Barker rode to the rescue of the British track cycling team to land gold with a sensational ride in the points race on the final day of the world championships on Sunday.
Track powerhouse nation Britain had endured a worrying championships, seen as a dress rehearsal for this year’s Tokyo Olympics, with only three medals, none gold, over the first four days, leaving Britain well down the medals table.
But Welsh rider Barker produced a superb late solo attack to gain a lap on her rivals, securing a crucial 20 points that fired her to the top of the leaderboard.
American Jennifer Valente had no time to launch a counter-attack and had to settle for the silver medal. Norway’s Anita Yvonne Stenberg was third.
Barker, an Olympic gold medalist in the team pursuit in Rio de Janeiro, ensured that Britain will have at least one gold medal from the world championships, just as she did last year when she won the scratch race.
The last time Britain did not win a world gold was in 2015.
(Reporting by Martyn Herman; editing by Clare Fallon)
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