Category: Luke Plapp

TRACK | Team focussed on Tokyo

2/3/2020

Australia has finished the 2020 UCI Track Cycling World Championships with three medals after Stephanie Morton won a bronze medal in the final event of the Championships, the women's keirin.

Morton's bronze added to the team sprint silver won with Kaarle McCulloch on the opening day of competition. All three of Australia's medals came through the sprint squad with Nathan Hart, Matthew Richardson, and Thomas Cornish winning team sprint bronze on day one.

Despite Australia exiting a Track World Championships without a gold medal for the first time in twelve years, Australian Cycling Team Performance Director Simon Jones remains focussed on the team's overarching strategy which is aiming to deliver success at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

"Australia has had a pretty glittering history of winning world titles - in 2017 we won more world titles than you could poke a stick at and that is not what we are trying to achieve this year," Jones said.

"We want to win in Tokyo. Yes, we were aiming for podium performances here, or very close to, and you can't hide the fact we have come up short in some areas. But we have to learn from it.

"We tried several different things here, and we have to settle on a plan and then train to it. Now we have finished this period. We gave everyone opportunities, and now we have to gather the facts and make some decisions now.

"There are five months to the Games, which is a long time."

Jones was impressed by the results of debutants Maeve Plouffe, 20, Luke Plapp, 19, and Tom Cornish, 20, who moved into the team via the Podium Potential Academy.

"The youngsters did very well, it is great to see, and that is a testament to the Academy in that we are providing opportunities to younger talent. They also provide upward pressure, and that is really good to see."

0 Comments

TRACK | Tokyo strategy on target

29/2/2020

0 Comments

Less than twenty four hours after finishing outside of the medals in the team pursuit, Australia’s charge at Olympic gold in Tokyo continued in Germany with Alex Porter and Luke Plapp delivering personal bests in the 1000m time trial and individual pursuit finals. The non-Olympics events were used to help simulate the Tokyo racing schedule, and prepare them for August.

In the women’s omnium, a knee injury sustained after a crash in the elimination race cruelly ended Georgia Baker’s run at the podium.

Men’s Time Trial / Individual Pursuit

After finishing outside of the medals yesterday in the team pursuit, Australia's focus on delivering Olympic gold continued through the punishing 1000m time trial and 4km individual pursuit events.

Despite both events not being on the Olympic programme, Australia used the racing opportunity to simulate the sensations of competing across three consecutive days with the men's team pursuit to be contested across the same duration at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

"The whole process of today was to get up like it was the last day of the Olympics, do a pre-start in the morning, come out to the track, get in that headspace of full gas and execute it on the track," said Alex Porter, who bolted from the gates to cover the four-lap time trial in a personal best time (1:00.960).

"After last night's TP final, I was unsure how I would back up this morning, but on the rollers this morning I felt better than I did yesterday. So to go out and ride a four-second PB [personal best] in a kilo after having raced three team pursuits over two days, it has given me a huge boost of confidence."

Reigning world champions Australia finished fourth in the team pursuit held across the first two days of the Championships. The team narrowly missed the medal rounds and were surprisingly overlapped in the bronze medal final by Italy.

"In the final, we thought we would throw caution to the wind and go full gas and see how it would go, but it ended up hurting us in the back end," said Porter, who fell off the pace in the final few laps of the final. "But that happens, we went out there trying something different, and we are disappointed for sure. We came for our last hit out before the games wanting to put the right foot forward.

"But at the end of the day, as much as it is nice to win a world title, we weren't here to peak for Worlds, or win Worlds.

"The main goal is to win an Olympic gold medal, and this is a stepping stone towards that."

Denmark set a new benchmark in the event after shattering the world record three times, ultimately posting a stunning 3mins 44.672secs. Despite having nearly four seconds shaved off their 2019 world record this week, Porter and the Australian team remain committed to the ultimate target, the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.

"We have now gone from being the hunted to hunting," Porter said. "We've known it was coming for a long time, everyone has been going fast, and I am glad it has happened here.

"The feeling we all have now, none of us like it. We have taken a hit, but the real sign of a champion is how you get back up in the next fight.

"And as I said to Glenn [O'Shea] on the start line, my 3:42 TP training starts now. That's it, that is the goal now. I personally and all the boys believe it can happen."

Like Porter, Luke Plapp lined up in all three team pursuit rounds on Wednesday and Thursday, and on Friday the nineteen-year-old fronted for the individual race against the clock.

"To ride a PB given the last few days of racing, you can't be disappointed with that," said Plapp who recorded a personal best time (4:18.520) on his way to finishing thirteenth. "I'll be honest. I woke up this morning and felt like I had been hit by a truck, the legs were pretty buckled, but it was good to go through the process and be able to switch off and on."

Plapp came into the team on the eve of the Championships after Kelland O'Brien - a member of Australia's 2019 world champion and world-record-setting outfit - was unable to recover in time after breaking his collarbone in January. The opportunity of riding his maiden World Championships was not lost on the teenager.

"Everything happens for a reason," said Plapp. "Kell will come back so much hungrier for having missed these Championships, and he will come back so much more determined for Tokyo.

"We all will. There are some easy things to fix that will get us where we want to be. The little things just had a domino effect, so once we fix those, everything falls into place.

"I think that what has happened here is a blessing in disguise and we will turn it around for Tokyo."

The individual pursuit World Championship was won by Italy’s Filippo Ganna. He secured the title against Lambie Ashton (USA) after he posted a world record time of 4mins 01.934secs in qualifying.

Cameron Scott (1:01.057) finished fifteenth overall in the time trial which was won by Sam Ligtlee of the Netherlands.

Women’s Omnium

In the women’s omnium, a knee injury sustained after a crash in the elimination race cruelly ended Georgia Baker’s run at the podium.

In the omnium’s opening event, the scratch race, Baker avoided a crash which brought down five riders on the penultimate lap. After finishing eighth, she moved into the top ten after grabbing eleventh in an animated tempo race.

Baker looked strong late in the elimination race before being unable to avoid a rider falling in front of her. The race was neutralised, and Baker impressively rejoined the race before being the sixth-last rider eliminated two laps later.

The sixth-place finish in the elimination race shot her into sixth overall and into medal contention with only the points race to come.

However, with her knee taking much of the impact in the crash, Baker was unable to keep pace in a hectic points race. After losing twenty points halfway through the race after being lapped by the field, Baker fell out of the top ten before gallantly finishing the event in fourteenth overall.

The title was taken out by Japan’s Yumi Kajihara, who finished with 121 points, 12 points clear of Italian Letizia Paternoster.

0 Comments

TRACK | Team Australia Guide for Berlin Track Worlds

20/2/2020

0 Comments

Photo - Hikari Media

The 17-member Australian Team departed Adelaide on Wednesday evening bound for the 2020 UCI Track World Championships in Berlin, Germany.

The five-day Championships, to be held from 26 February - 1 March, offers the world's best a final opportunity to refine and rehearse ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.

In all, 20 titles will be decided in Berlin, with particular interest on the six Olympic events - Team Pursuit, Madison, Omnium, Team Sprint, Sprint and Keirin.

Photo - Casey Gibson

ENDURANCE

Ashlee Ankudinoff - St George CC, NSW - 2019 individual & team pursuit world champion
Georgia Baker - Northern Districts CC, TAS - 2019 team pursuit world champion
Amy Cure - Mersey Valley Devonport CC, TAS - 2019 team pursuit world champion
Annette Edmondson - Norwood CC, SA - 2019 team pursuit world champion
Alexandra Manly - Central Districts CC, SA - 2019 points race & team pursuit world champion
Maeve Plouffe - Port Adelaide CC, SA - World Championship debut
Leigh Howard - Geelong CC, VIC - 2019 team pursuit world champion
Cameron Meyer - Midland CC, WA - 9-time career world champion
Alexander Porter - Scotch College CC, SA - 2019 team pursuit world champion
Cameron Scott - St George CC, NSW - 2019 team pursuit world champion
Samuel Welsford - Northern Beaches CC, WA - 2019 scratch & team pursuit world champion
Luke Plapp - Brunswick CC, VIC - World Championship debut

Australia heads into the Championships as the defending champions in five events - men's and women's team pursuit; men's scratch, women's points race and women's individual pursuit.

Australia's title defence in the men's team pursuit will begin in the opening session and will feature world record holders Sam Welsford, Alexander Porter, Leigh Howard, plus Cameron Scott.

Podium Potential Academy member Luke Plapp comes into the team to replace world champion and world record holder Kelland O'Brien who will not race the World Championships as he continues his recovery from a broken collarbone sustained in January. Plapp, a dual 2018 junior world champion, will make his elite Worlds debut in the individual pursuit and is listed as a reserve for the team pursuit.

Nine-time career world champion Cameron Meyer will take on the omnium, and the Madison with Sam Welsford, while Welsford will take to the track in defence of his scratch race world title.

Photo - Hikari Media

Reigning women's world champions Ashlee Ankudinoff, Georgia Baker, Annette Edmondson will team with World Championship debutant Maeve Plouffe in the team pursuit.

Ankudinoff will look to defend her individual pursuit crown with Plouffe also set to ride the individual race against the clock. Alexandra Manly will line up to defend her title in the points race and will also contest the scratch race.

Edmondson and Amy Cure will pair up for the Madison, while Baker will tackle the omnium.

Photo - Casey Gibson

SPRINT

Stephanie Morton - South Coast CC, SA - 2019 team sprint world champion
Kaarle McCulloch - St George CC, NSW - 2019 team sprint world champion
Nathan Hart - ANU CC, ACT - 2018-19 Track World Cup gold medallist
Matthew Richardson - Midland CC, WA
Thomas Cornish - Southern Cross CC, NSW - World Championship debut

Reigning world champions Stephanie Morton and Kaarle McCulloch begin their team sprint title defence on Wednesday's opening day of competition. Triple World Championship sprint silver medalist Morton will also race the individual sprint and keirin.

McCulloch, a triple medallist in 2019, will take on three events; the team sprint, individual sprint and 500m time trial.

2018 sprint world champion Matthew Glaetzer is a late withdrawal from the Championships after sustaining a leg injury at training last week. With his 2020 focus on a third Olympic Games selection, Glaetzer, who was slated to ride the team and individual sprint plus the keirin, will remain in Australia to focus on his recovery.

Podium Potential Academy member Thomas Cornish will replace Glaetzer for the team sprint, scheduled for the opening day of competition, where he will team with Nathan Hart and Matthew Richardson.

Hart and Richardson will also contest the sprint, while Cameron Scott and Alexander Porter will line up in the 1000m time trial.

Photo - Hikari Media

SCHEDULE - DATE (IN AUS); TIME (AEDT)

Thurs 27/2 430am - 8am

W - Scratch 10km Alexandra Manly
W - Team Sprint Stephanie Morton/Kaarle McCulloch
M - Team Sprint Nathan Hart, Matthew Richardson, Thomas Cornish
M & W Team Pursuit Qualifying 11pm AEDT

Fri 28/2 430am - 730am

M - Team Pursuit Leigh Howard, Sam Welsford, Cameron Scott, Alexander Porter
M - Scratch 15km Sam Welsford
M - Keirin NA
W - Team Pursuit Ashlee Ankudinoff, Georgia Baker, Annette Edmondson, Maeve Plouffe
W - Sprint Qualifying 1230am

Sat 29/2 430am - 815am

M - Points race 40km TBC
M - Kilometre Time Trial Cameron Scott, Alexander Porter
M - Individual Pursuit Luke Plapp
W - Omnium Georgia Baker
W - Sprint Stephanie Morton; Kaarle McCulloch

Sun 1/3 230am - 6am

W - 500m Time Trial Kaarle McCulloch
W - Madison 30km Annette Edmondson/Amy Cure
W - Individual pursuit Ashlee Ankudinoff; Maeve Plouffe
M - Omnium Cameron Meyer
M - Sprint Qualifying 9pm

Mon 2/3 12am-3am

W - Points Race 25km Alexandra Manly
M - Madison 50km Cameron Meyer/Sam Welsford
W - Keirin Stephanie Morton
M - Sprint Nathan Hart, Matthew Richardson

WATCH

Live on FOXSPORTS Australia Channel 506

FOLLOW

#AusCyclingTeam

#Berlin2020

0 Comments

TRACK | World record nudged as men claim Brisbane gold

14/12/2019

0 Comments

Photo - John Veage

Double team pursuit gold medals for Australia highlighted the opening day of the 2019-2020 TISSOT UCI Track Cycling World Cup on Friday at the Anna Meares Velodrome in Brisbane.

In the men’s team pursuit, world champions Sam Welsford, Leigh Howard, Kelland O’Brien, Alexander Porter plus Podium Potential Academy member Luke Plapp secured Australia’s second gold with an emphatic victory over New Zealand.

The quartet of Welsford, Howard, O’Brien and Porter claimed the honours in the qualifying stage with the best time (3:50.017), one second ahead of New Zealand.

Plapp came in for Porter in the first round, with the Australians clocking their second-fastest time behind their world record (3:48.282) and New Zealand (3:48.244) nudging the world record to set up a mouth-watering final.

In front of the packed crowd, the two teams arm-wrestled over the first two kilometres, before the Australians rode away to take the gold (3:49.776), four seconds ahead of New Zealand (3:53.601).

“Wearing our rainbows in front of a hometown was awesome. After winning the silver in New Zealand last week, it was so good to have a win on the boards. It just shows that we have some good talent heading into the Olympics next year,” said Welsford.

“The conditions this evening were very fast, and they just tapered off with the storm passing through so we were lucky enough to go 48.2 in the first round, which is the second-fastest time we have ever done.

“We are pleased with how we performed today.”

Podium Potential Academy member Lucas Plapp was ecstatic with the result and the overall team effort.

“The culture of the team is pretty amazing, Tim has been with us the whole way, and Matty Gilmore stepped up for this weekend. We can’t thank our support staff enough,” said Plapp.

In the women’s team sprint, Poland’s Marlena Karwacka and Urszula Łoś claimed the gold over the Russian Federation pairing of Ekaterina Rogovaya and Anastasiia Voinova in an exhilarating final which was decided by a photo finish.

Poland was the team to beat all day after topping qualifying before going on to beat Ukraine in the first round heats to book their spot in the gold medal race.

“We are very thrilled to race in front of such an enthusiastic crowd, this is the first World Cup medal that we have won, so we are very excited to take home a medal and some koalas,” said Łoś.

Reigning world champion Steph Morton teamed with Caitlin Ward to win the bronze medal (33.164) over New Zealand (33.511).

In the men’s team sprint, the Japanese trio took the gold medal (42.912) beating Poland by three seconds. After topping the qualifying and beating Gazprom Rusvelo by half a second in the heats, New Zealand (43.406) defeated Great Britain (44.177) in the bronze medal race.

The Australian trio Matthew Richardson, Nathan Hart and Thomas Cornish qualified fourth before falling to Great Britain in the first round heats.

Photo - John Veage

0 Comments

Young guns looking to fire at Oceania Track Cycling Championships

9/10/2018

0 Comments

A host of Australia’s world champions, world record holders and Commonwealth champions will headline this week’s 2019 Oceania Track Cycling Championships at the Adelaide Super-drome.

Reigning sprint world champion Matthew Glaetzer, Olympic medallist and dual world champion Annette Edmondson, triple Commonwealth champion Stephanie Morton plus team pursuit world record holders in Kelland O'Brien, Alexander Porter, Samuel Welsford and Leigh Howard will be in action.

The four-day competition is set to showcase some of the sport’s young guns including sprinter Holly Takos, and endurance riders Kristina Clonan and Luke Plapp.

Follow Live Results

A dual 2018 junior world champion, Plapp, 17, was recently announced in the Australian Cycling Team’s Podium Potential Academy and will make his debut in the elite ranks at the Championships.

“Racing the Oceania Championships is going to be an unreal experience. It will be the first time pulling on the green and gold in the elite men’s category and racing the likes of the older boys from the Australian Cycling Team for the first time at a major championship,” said Plapp who will move from Melbourne to Adelaide to take up the full-time Academy position.

Plapp will take to the track in the team pursuit with fellow Academy members Godfrey Slattery, Conor Leahy and Jarrod Drizners. Australian Cycling Team’s Cam Scott completes the outfit.

“I think we have a pretty awesome team created from the new Podium Potential Academy and I can’t wait to see where we can take it. There’s a huge opportunity ahead and being in such an elite environment with the support around can only make us grow.”

2017 Oceania champion Holly Takos, 22, has been steadily honing her craft with the Australian Cycling Team over the past few years alongside Morton and three-time world champion Kaarle McCulloch.

“It's great to be able to train with two of the best female track sprinters in the world. Everything they do is world class, from the way they train to the way they handle themselves off the bike and it has been amazing to learn from them,” said Takos. “The entire team works hard, always supporting and challenging each other, which keeps me motivated and inspires me always to be pushing myself to be my best.”

In 2017, the Adelaide-native broke through for her career win taking the Oceania keirin crown, edging Morton in the final. In 2019 she will line up in the team sprint, keirin and sprint.

“Winning my first Oceania keirin title was very special. It was my first win and opened up many opportunities for me. The keirin is one of my favourite events, so I am fired up to get back out there and give it another crack this year.

“It is great to have the Oceania Championships not only on Australian soil but in my home state, which gives the opportunity for my friends and family to come to experience the excitement of track racing.”

Kristina Clonan, 20, will make her debut as part of the Australian Cycling Team women’s endurance program, joining Olympians Annette Edmondson, Amy Cure, Ashlee Ankudinoff, Georgia Baker and Macey Stewart.

Clonan’s star has been on the rise over the past couple of seasons, with the Queenslander claiming the 2018 Oceania and National Madison titles with Macey Stewart, in addition to a host of national podium appearances. The pair will look to defend their Madison crown in Adelaide this week.

“Last season was a huge stepping stone, and I'm grateful to be racing alongside such strong girls that continually bring their A-game. It was a great confidence booster and experience, but I still have much work to do again this year,” said Clonan.

“The last few months have been pretty busy for me. Japan was a great experience. I was able to race with Macey in the Madison, under the guidance of Tim Decker, who has so much knowledge and gave Mace and myself some good insight.

“It is very motivating now to go back and race with Macey and try to defend our (Oceania) Madison title.”

2019 Oceania Track Cycling Championships

10-13 October 2018, Adelaide Super-Drome
40 events - elite & under 19 categories - men & women
Tickets $10/day. Buy Tickets online or at the door.
Live Results
Championships website

0 Comments

Categories

Archives

TRACK | Team focussed on Tokyo

TRACK | Tokyo strategy on target

TRACK | Team Australia Guide for Berlin Track Worlds

TRACK | World record nudged as men claim Brisbane gold

Young guns looking to fire at Oceania Track Cycling Championships

Archives

Categories

ABOUT THE AUSTRALIAN CYCLING TEAM

ABOUT CYCLING AUSTRALIA

FOLLOW

CONTACT

Location

Categories

Archives

TRACK | Team focussed on Tokyo

TRACK | Tokyo strategy on target

TRACK | Team Australia Guide for Berlin Track Worlds

TRACK | World record nudged as men claim Brisbane gold

Young guns looking to fire at Oceania Track Cycling Championships

Archives

Categories

ABOUT THE AUSTRALIAN CYCLING TEAM

​ABOUT CYCLING AUSTRALIA

FOLLOW

CONTACT

Location

ABOUT CYCLING AUSTRALIA