World track cycling opens
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This is a digitised version of an article from The Cayman Compass's print archive. Occasionally, the digitisation process introduces transcription errors, or other problems.
See the article in its original context from August 1988.
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At the Blaarmeersen sports center, only 250 spectators showed up for the opening qualifying races and were largely outnumbered by the athletes, officials from the 16 participating nations and the media.
The number of events this year have been reduced because all Olympic events will take place in Seoul next month, only leaving the seventy professionals racers and a handful of amateurs competing in non-Olympic events in Ghent.
Most professional riders sidestep the track championships and only focus on the road race Sunday, the highlight of the weeklong cycling championships. Japan has the strongest contingent for the track events and is expected to take the most medals in the five days of competition on the wooden banked track.
It fields the only two defending champions among the professionals. Sprint ace Nobuyuki Tawara and Keirin champion Hazuni Honda lead the 13-man team.
The other 1987 champions, Denmark's Hans-Henrik Oersted in the pursuit, Swiss Max Huerzeler in the notor pace and Urs Freuler in the points race are absent through injury or retirement. "It will give a lot of newcomers an opportunity to make a name for themselves," said Belgium's team leader and former champion Patrick Sercu. "It will make for a very open championships,” he added. The newcomers however will find it tough to get a gold medal in the sprinting and Keirin events.
