The Sydney Thousand meeting at the new revamped Canterbury Velodrome, Tempe, scheduled on Sunday October 29, not only attracted a world class cycling field but some of Australia top athletes. Dual Olympic and Commonwealth Games champion Ryan Bayley and Robbie McEwen head the list of star Australians, but Bayley will be fully tested by former world champion Mark French and National champions Jason Niblett and National keirin champion Joel Leonard. However, the real challenge for Bayley will come through Malaysian sports star of the year Josiah Ng. The Malaysian flyer is fast, an Olympic finalist in the keirin and a world cup star.
Robbie McEwen will also make his only velodrome appearance and will compete in a point score race. It will be a great opportunity for McEwen, three times winner of the green jersey in the Tour de France, to pit his sprinting and endurance ability against some of the nations best track stars.
The Danish national team will be making their first appearance since winning the World Cup in Sydney last year, also competing in a 2000 metres teams pursuit match race. The Danes are quite familiar with the track, having used the facility in preparation for their World Cup victory in Sydney.
The Sydney Gift over 80 metres is being staged for the very first time in conjunction with the Sydney Thousand in over 100 years. The race has attracted a crack field of entries including Stalwell Gift place getters Rod Buchanan and New Zealand champion Rob Hannah, along with Nigerian Commonwealth Games representative Anthony Alozie and female sprint sensation Jane Dike. The NSW Athletic Association was founded the same year as the Sydney Thousand, in 1903, when 54,000 people crammed into the Sydney Cricket Ground to view the action. The Canterbury velodrome has recently been restored to its very best in readiness for the Sydney Thousand, Australia’s most historic track cycling event.
