KUALA LUMPUR, March 1 – National ace track cyclist Mohd Azizulhasni Awang concluded the 2020 UCI World Track Cycling Championships with a bronze medal in the men’s individual sprint event.
The 32-year-old Dungun-born edged reigning bronze medallist Mateusz Rudyk of Poland in the bronze medal race at the Velodrom, Berlin, Germany to finally secure a podium finish in the event after 11 years, according to the International Cycling Union’s (UCI) official website www.uci.org.
The 2017 keirin world champion’s first medal in the world meet was a sprint silver in the 2009 Pruszkow edition but he has not won a medal in the sprint event since then.
Azizul started off by breaking the Asian and national records with a time of 9.548 seconds to finish fifth among 34 riders in the qualifying round yesterday, erasing Japanese Tomohiro Fukaya’s 9.609s Asian record and renewing his own Malaysian national record of 9.760s.
Two days ago, Azizul clinched the bronze medal in the keirin event.
Meanwhile, reigning champion Harrie Lavreysen retained the rainbow jersey after edging compatriot Jeffrey Hoogland in the all-Dutch final.
Lavreysen, who also won the keirin event, had edged Azizul in the semifinals.
— BERNAMA