West offers honest appraisal of sprinting performance
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Shane Perkins is back from Japan and ready for Team Jayco's world cup campaign.(Image credit: John Veage)
Scott Sunderland (Jayco)(Image credit: Gerry McManus/www.splitsecondimages.co.uk)
Anna Meares and Kaarle McCulloch of Australia get things underway in their team sprint final.(Image credit: Gerry McManus/www.splitsecondimages.co.uk)
Australian national track sprint coach Gary West has given an honest appraisal of his team’s strengths as the Australians prepare for the Melbourne round of the UCI Track World Cup on November 19-21.
“We need to hone our skills. We need to get practice in the tactical and technical components of the sport,” said West. “At the end of the day competition is the most critical part of what we do.”
West has admitted that the team’s home soil test is important in the season’s preparations, particularly for the world championships in Copenhagen next March.
“The track world cup in Melbourne is critical because it is an important event in the lead up to the world championships,” he explained.
The opening round of the UCI Track World Cup was held in Manchester at the end of October where Great Britain, in its home event, proved it is the country to beat. West is well aware of the challenges heading into the Melbourne round and is under no illusions what that entails.
“We’ve got some work to do. Manchester was an eye opener for us,” said West. “Anna Meares and Kaarle McCulloch are certainly on track but we’ve got a little bit of extra work to do in the males.
“Shane Perkins continues to improve and was impressive in Manchester, likewise with Daniel Elis but there’s still some room for improvement,” he added.
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“We want to match ourselves against the very best as often as possible and we won’t shy away from that challenge.”
The Australian team for the Melbourne Track World Cup:
Alex Bird Rohan Dennis Luke Durbridge Michael Hepburn Peter Lewis Cameron Meyer Jason Niblett Dale Parker Ashlee Ankudinoff Belinda Goss Sarah Kent Anna Meares Emily Rosemond Josephine Tomic
Team Jayco for the Melbourne Track World Cup:
Daniel Ellis Shane Perkins Scott Sunderland Kaarle McCulloch
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