Olympics 2012: Jason Kenny Wins Men's Sprint as GB's Cycling Dominance Goes on

Jason Kenny continued Great Britain’s dominance in the Olympic Velodrome with a memorable victory over Gregory Bauge in the men’s sprint final.

Selected ahead of reigning Olympic champion Sir Chris Hoy for the event, Bolton-born Kenny saw off current World champion Bauge in emphatic style to gain his second gold of the games and third Olympic gold in total. He coasted past the Frenchman in the first race, before a determined effort to hold off Bauge in the second.

Kenny’s triumph avenged April’s World Championship final when he was on the wrong end of the same scoreline to Bauge in Melbourne.

After Thursday’s dominant display alongside Hoy and Philip Hindes in the team sprint over a French trio led by Bauge—and breaking the Olympic Record in the time trial element of the individual event—Kenny entered the gold medal contest in the form of his life.

The first encounter was classic cat-and-mouse sprinting, Bauge looking to bully Kenny off the track with his tactical nous and physicality.  Kenny was happy to stay in the Frenchman’s slip-stream, rounding the back straight before overtaking in near the line.

In the second, Kenny sought to keep Bauge at bay from the front.  It looked as though France’s world champion sprinter would get onto the Brit’s wheel coming into the final 100m, but Kenny pulled out more to secure Britain’s fifth gold on the track of their home games.

Alongside Kenny’s double, Victoria Pendleton took home the gold in the women’s Keiren on Friday, and both the men and women’s Team Pursuit squads claimed top spot on the podium.

Unfortunately for their rivals, Team GB’s cyclists unprecedented success may not be finished yet.  Pendleton looks a solid bet to add another gold to her own personal haul in the women’s individual sprint, her favored event.

Team pursuit champion Laura Trott is ideally placed in the women’s Omnium competition going into her final three events. 

And don’t forget Sir Chris Hoy, who is aiming for his sixth Olympic gold in the Keiren.