BARBADOS’ BEST is already out front and centre at local cycling’s biggest stage.
Darren Matthews has wasted no time leaving his mark at the Barbados Cycling Union’s National Track Championships, having taken a predictable lead in the novel Omnium event while also snatching victory in the seniors’ kilo on Thursday’s opening night at the Randolph Field Velodrome.
The 22-year-old’s performance was the story on a night that featured the first ever local staging of the Omnium – an event made up of six different races.
Coming in as the only rider to have experience in the event, Matthews, riding under the G4S Team Swift banner, stormed to the front following a domineering victory in the points race to go with a pair of second-place finishes in the flying 250 metres and the elimination race.
He probably felt hard done not to be awarded victory in the latter of the two, having crossed the line ahead of main iExchange Team Excel rival Javed Mounter in that elimination to grab what appeared to be his second victory in the first three races.
But Mounter’s coach Barry Forde lodged a protest, claiming Matthews cut down in front of his ward off the banking and impeded his progress after Mounter had selected the sprinter’s lane first – an infraction which chief judge Wayne Robinson upheld.
The second-place finish still gave Matthews a table-leading five penalty points, three fewer than promising A-Class Batteries Golden Wheelers junior Edwin Sutherland, who made a silver-medal effort in the points race sandwiched among two thirds in the flying 250 and the elimination.
Mounter would’ve been tied with Sutherland for second on eight points following a pair of wins in those same two events were it not for a DNF (did not finish) in the points race that gave him an additional six points.
At least Mounter rebounded to win the elite keirin final when he easily mowed down Team Swift rider Ross Callender and Matthews after the latter tried to make his move from a lap out.
However, that third-place showing came after Matthews edged Mounter by the smallest of margins to win the seniors’ kilo final in one minute, 10:08 seconds. Mounter was second after posting 1:10.37 while Callender came third with 1:15.36.
Mounter’s club mate Joshua Kelly (1:14.38) won the junior equivalent, beating out the likes of Illusion Graphics Fugen’s Kristin Vanderpool (1:14.52) and Sutherland (1:14.64) before Team Swift’s Liam Lovell downed that same field in the keirin.
Team Excel had more to celebrate when Deidre Mayers swept the women’s flying 200 metres and the 500 metres, relegating talented teen and teammate Amber Joseph to a pair of silver medals.
Team Swift’s Tremaine Forde Catwell set a 500 metre record of 38.25 seconds while taking the tiny mite event before Tunnico Weekes (38.53) of A-Class Batteries Golden Wheelers won the juvenile equivalent.
Chayne Goodman (Team Swift) stunned an open scratch race field for the juveniles and tiny mites by dramatically coming from behind to outsprint Golden Wheelers’ duo Shamar Rawlins and Darius Ramsammy, who finished second and third, respectively.
Independent masters cyclist Edward Julien completed the keirin-kilo double earlier in the night.