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Southland showed that it is still a powerhouse in New Zealand cycling with some exceptional performances at the Track National Championships, contested over five days of intense racing at the Grassroots Trust Velodrome in Cambridge.
The team claimed a national record, a couple of championship records, and numerous gold medals in a performance that saw 25 different riders step onto the podium, many of them multiple times.
Highlights from the event included a national record that fell in the U17 boys team sprint to Magnus Jamieson and George Manson, while Riley Faulkner and Caitlin Kelly set a new championship record on their way to gold in the U17 girls team sprint. Nick Kergozou was another rider to claim a national championship record in his gold medal winning ride in the Elite men 1000m time trial on the first day of racing, in what proved a very successful day for Southland, with Jamieson claiming two gold medals, in the U17 boys individual pursuit and the U17 boys elimination race. Emily Forsyth claimed two silver medals in the same session, in the U15 girls elimination race and the 500m time trial, while Caitlin Kelly also claimed a silver in the U17 girls individual pursuit.
Jamieson would go on to claim eight medals in total, three of them gold, over the five days of competition. Other top performances came from Caitlin Kelly, who took a total of six medals in the U17 girls division, including gold in the team sprint, and Forsyth, who took six medals in the U15 girls division.
The second day of racing produced one of the highlights for Southland as the U19 and Elite women claimed a total of four medals in the space of five minutes of racing, with Ciara Kelly taking gold in the U19 women Keirin, with Pearl Harris-Blain taking silver, and Nicole Marshall taking silver in the Elite women sprint, with Geertien Venter taking bronze.
Ronan Shearing also claimed gold in the U19 men Keirin, making it a clean sweep of U19 Keirin titles for Southland. There was also silver for Bradly Knipe in the Elite men sprint, and Forsyth added a silver in the U15 girls points race to her growing collection.
The highlight of day three was a great ride by Connor Douglas to take gold in the Paracycling men 1000m time trial.
Tom Sexton provided the highlight of day four with a display of determined riding in the Elite men individual pursuit, securing the gold medal. There were also silver medals for George Manson and Ciara Kelly in the U17 boys and girls 500m time trial respectively, Emily Forsyth in the U15 girls scratch race, and for Frankie Thomson and Magnus Jamieson in the U17 boys Madison.
The final day of competition produced more success for Southland, with gold and a national record for Manson and Jamieson in the U17 boys team sprint, a gold and national championship record for Faulkner and Kelly in the U17 girls team sprint, and a gold in the Elite men team sprint for Haydn Jack, Bradly Knipe, and Nick Kergozou. There was also a silver for Emily Forsyth and Poppy McIvor in the U15 girls team sprint.
All in all, 25 members of the Southland team stepped onto the podium during the event, with numerous other riders finishing in the top five in their events or qualifying for finals. Add in many personal best times, and it was a highly successful event for Southland.