Track Champions League: Katie Archibald loses ground to Jennifer Valente, Claudio Imhof and Sebastian Mora tied

Katie Archibald (Great Britain) has lost ground to Jennifer Valente (United States) in the Women’s Endurance at the 2022 UCI Track Champions League after a dramatic night in London.

Archibald had taken the series lead after a great ride in the scratch race where she finished second, but struggled in the elimination race which was won by Valente.

All of it means Valente will take an eight-point lead heading into the finale on Saturday.

Valente tactically stuck to the back of Archibald’s wheel in the 20-lap scratch race, but it was the British rider who managed to be the first rider of the bunch across the line, behind Ireland’s Emily Kay who executed a solo attack to win the race itself.

Meanwhile, Valente was fourth so Archibald, who admitted the race took a lot out of her, took the series lead by three points.

The big drama came in the elimination race when Archibald had flashbacks to her shock early exit in Mallorca when she very nearly came a cropper in the first part of the event.

She was clearly struggling and didn’t have the legs so was eventually eliminated with seven riders left.

Valente produced a brilliant performance to beat Norway’s Antia Stenberg in the final sprint to win her first race of the Track Champions League this year at a crucial moment.

In the Men’s Endurance, Switzerland’s Claudio Imhof’s lead was wiped as a strong night for Sebastian Mora (Spain) has put him level on points with the Swiss rider.

Britain’s Will Perrett won the men’s scratch race from a two-man breakaway as he beat Germany’s Mortiz Malcharek in a sprint, while Mora crossed the line in fourth towards the front of the bunch, with Imhof in 10th.

The elimination race saw Imhof run out of legs as he came fourth with Mora taking second place behind last year’s Men’s Endurance champion Gavin Hoover.

Mathis Guillemette (Canada) is just six points behind in the standings, with a trio of Brits – Mark Stewart, who is an outside shot of winning the title at 12 points adrift, Oliver Wood and Perrett in behind.

– – –