Dutchman Lavreysen dominates major competitor Richardson and wins Olympic gold in the sprint tournament

Harrie Lavreysen has won the sprint final at the track cycling event of the 2024 Olympic Games. Lavreysen fended off his major opponent in the first final and skillfully finished it off in the second part of the final.

On Wednesday, Lavreysen and Richardson clocked almost identical times in the qualifications, both worthy of a world record. However, Lavreysen was three-thousandths of a second faster than his new rival. Dutchman Hoogland was already behind by a significant margin, but on Wednesday and Thursday, both Dutch riders easily progressed through the rounds. However, things came to a halt for Hoogland on Friday afternoon, as he faced a too-fast opponent in Richardson. As a result, the Aussie had to face off against Lavreysen in the final.

In the women's sprint event, the qualifications and series began on Friday. Hetty van de Wouw clocked the eighth-fastest time, convincingly advancing to the next round. Steffie van der Peet clocked the fourteenth time, finishing in the middle of the pack. This impacted her performance in the round of 32. Van de Wouw easily defeated a Mexican opponent, but Van der Peet, after a loss to Kristina Clonan, needed a repechage. She won that – this time against two opponents – allowing her to compete in the round of 16 at 7:10 PM local time.

The men's sprint finals began at 6:00 PM, with Hoogland facing off against Brit Jack Carlin and Lavreysen against the very strong Australian Richardson. Hoogland was the first to start cranking up the heat, but he was beaten at the finish line in the first round by a strong punch from Carlin. Then it was Lavreysen's turn, who took a 1-0 lead against his Australian opponent with a very strong round.

An hour later, the Dutchman was up again. Richardson tried to lure him into a different strategy, but failed: Lavreysen skillfully outmaneuvered him.

Videos: Lavreysen fends off Richardson in first heat of sprint final