Source :- PERTH NOW NEWS
One of the holiest cliches of high-performance sport is there’s no “I” in team.
The Australian men’s team pursuiters have turned that maxim on its head at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games.
Smarting from their Ashes loss to England the day before in the team pursuit final, the Australian cyclists emphatically made amends on Saturday morning (AEST).
First Oli Bleddyn led their medal sweep in the 4000m individual pursuit, beating fellow Paris Olympics team pursuit gold medallist Conor Leahy for the first time.
James Moriarty had earlier ensured the sweep by winning the bronze medal ride-off.
Then three months after snapping his collarbone and fracturing an elbow in a crash at a French race, it was Blake Agnoletto’s turn.
He joined Tom Cornish in the elimination race, where Scotland’s Mark Stewart bravely did a power of work at the front.
Agnoletto briefly thought he was eliminated with seven riders left – instead, it was Cornish.
Once English rider Henry Hobbs was out, Agnoletto launched a long-range attack to overpower the exhausted Scot.
Agnoletto called the end the nicest half lap of his life.
“We didn’t leave anything on the table,” he said.
“I was warming up over there and I saw three Australian flags flying high.
“I saw Georgia’s race as well (Georgia Baker’s win in the scratch race) and the teamwork that went into that.”
“I thought ‘this is my turn now’.”
As Agnoletto soaked up the last lap, he also scanned the crowd for his mum and aunt.
“Winning an individual medal at a Games like this and going up to mum in the stands when she’s in tears … there’s not much I can compare this to,” he said.
“I’m still doing a bit of rehab on my elbow now, it’s not 100 per cent, but it’s in a good enough state to put out a few good performances over the past couple of days.
“We’ll just keep pushing.
“This has to be one of the highlights of my career.”
The sweep of the individual pursuit also begs the question how they didn’t win the team event, given their obvious collective strength.
“They’re very different events. There’s not much to think about in IP – just go full-gas,” Bleddyn said.
“In a team pursuit, there are a lot of elements. It’s a fine balance to get the most out and not let it blow to pieces.
Bleddyn beat Leahy by nearly four seconds.
Adding lustre to his bragging rights, Bleddyn’s time of four minutes 3.898 seconds is a Games record and also took Leahy’s national record.
“Who knows how long it will last? He’s an absolute animal, Conor,” Bleddyn said.
