Unprecedented class! Lavreysen wins World Championship gold on kilometer time trial debut, sets new record

After Harrie Lavreysen already set a world record at sea level in the qualification for the kilometer time trial at the Track Cycling World Championships on Friday afternoon, he did it again, just as casually, in the final. It earned him the world title, his fifteenth in total, a record. The silver went to Jeffrey Hoogland, who finished at a respectable distance.

For Lavreysen, the kilometer time trial is a new discipline. As a debutant in this event at an international tournament, he is chasing a new world title. That chase has started perfectly. With a time of 57.4 seconds, he qualified for the next rounds, setting a sea-level record. He was four-tenths faster than the previous record held by Jeffrey Hoogland. Lavreysen also qualified for the finale, where he broke his own record but still fell three-tenths short of his friend and competitor, Hoogland.

To break the official world record, Lavreysen will need to shift into an even higher gear. Hoogland set a time of 55.433 seconds in October 2023 in Aguascalientes, Mexico. That time, set on a high-altitude track, is simply unbeatable on a sea-level track. The surprising performances by "Hattrick Harrie" come at the right time. He was knocked out in the semi-final of 'his' keirin event on Thursday. "I made a tactical error in the semifinals," a disappointed Lavreysen said afterward. "I waited too long and kept hanging at the upper level. Just plain super stupid.

Read more below the photo!

Lavreysen wins World Championship gold during his debut in the kilometer time trial

It took a long time in the final before anyone set a time even remotely close to the Dutch qualifying times. British rider Joseph Truman clocked 58.67, the first really good time. Good enough for bronze, as only the Dutch riders were still to ride after him. Hoogland went first. He was significantly faster than Truman from the start, already half a second ahead halfway through. However, it didn’t come easily for Hoogland. In the second half, he lost ground to Truman. He eventually posted a time of 58.25, about half a second slower than in the qualification.

Then came Lavreysen. Initially, he was more than a tenth of a second slower than Hoogland, which soon grew to two-tenths. Could he make up for that in the second part? The answer was a resounding yes! He pulled ahead to nearly a full second advantage. 57.3 was the final time, once again a world record at sea level. This meant Lavreysen raised his total number of world titles to fifteen, one more than track legend Arnaud Tournant. On the final day, Sunday, Lavreysen will compete again in the sprint.