Matthew Glaetzer and Harrie Lavreysen renewed their rivalry from Tokyo in the men’s keirin final here in Paris. The Dutchman picked up bronze then. Glaetzer, as we know, did not a win a single medal until his bronze in Paris in the men’s team sprint – at his fourth Games.
This field was full of champions, though, and the race could have gone to any of the riders given the importance of tactics. Glaetzer moved to the front with two laps to go, before Levreysen took over in front and then Matthew Richardson came around the outside.
Then came a sprint between the sprint king and his biggest threat. The Australian could not out-power Lavreysen, as he could not in the men’s sprint final, and Lavreysen goes home with three gold medals. But Richardson and Glaetzer have just won silver and bronze respectively. That is a terrific result for both.
The Aussie pair cannot believe it. Glaetzer entered the final Games of his career with everything to ride for, and now has two bronze medals to show for it. Richardson, who is known for going so hard he often vomits after races, looks absolutely shot. But he is happy, too. He and Lavreysen shared a nice moment after they crossed the finish line, rolling up next to each other for a hug that shows a lot of mutual respect. This will not be the end of that rivalry.
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