Trott, winner of the team pursuit and omnium gold in London, joined up with less experienced team-mates Ciara Horne, Katie Archibald and Elinor Barker to win the team pursuit at the Lee Valley Velo Park, as the British quartet proved too strong for Australia in the final.

They clocked a time of 4min 22.167sec to finish over two seconds clear of their Oceanic rivals, who finished in 4:24.335.

Such was Britain's strength in depth that another Olympic champion, Joanna Rowsell, was not even required for the final, with the 26-year-old riding in the earlier rounds before being replaced by Trott for the gold medal race.

The host nation were similarly dominant in the men's team pursuit as Steven Burke, the only survivor of the quartet which triumphed at London 2012, teamed up with Mark Christian, Andy Tennand and Owain Doull to win gold, overpowering New Zealand in the final.

They clocked 4:00.957 to beat New Zealand's 4:05.425, after world champions and favourites Australia suffered an unfortunate puncture in their semi-final defeat to the Kiwis.

Like their female counterparts, Britain had the luxury of dropping a reigning Olympic champion for the final race, with Beijing 2008 and London 2012 winner Ed Clancy missing out after a gruelling semi-final win over eventual bronze medal winners Denmark.

Zhong Tianshi and Gong Jinjie celebrate Chinese gold in the women's team sprint ©AFP/Getty Images





Elsewhere on the first day of action in London, there was victory for Jannie Salcedo Zambrado of Colombia in the scratch race, after she overpowered Lauren Stephens of the United States and Katarzyna Pawlowska of Poland.

Germany's men triumphed in the men's team sprint, which made up for defeat in the corresponding women's final to China, while Eloy Teruel Rovira ensured a Spanish victory in the men's points race. 

Contact the writer of this story at nick.butler@insidethegames. biz


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