Becky James takes silver and Katy Marchant wins bronze in women's sprint

Germany's Kristina Vogel took the gold after beating James 2-0 in the final

(Image credit: Watson)

Becky James wasn't able to overcome the power of Germany's Kristina Vogel in the final of the Olympic women's sprint competition, losing 2-0 to claim the silver medal.

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It's James' second silver of the Games after she took second in the women's keirin, but she ran two-time world sprint champion Vogel extremely close in both heats of the final.

The second leg saw James beaten extremely narrowly on the line after rounding Vogel in the final corner as the German took the lead.

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As Vogel threw her bike for the line she lost her saddle and fell back on her seatpost but managed to stay upright and claim the gold medal.

24-year-old James put in an impressive showing throughout the Games and may leave feeling disappointed that she didn't claim gold, but was lucky to be in Rio at all after a horrible stint on the sidelines with injury and illness.

Katy Marchant

Katy Marchant

Teammate Katy Marchant meanwhile took the bronze medal in the women's sprint against Elis Ligtlee (Ned) in a 2-0 clean sweep.

The final race was excruciatingly close, as Marchant made a last gasp attempt catch Ligtlee on the line having taken it up early, timing her bike throw perfectly to win the bronze by no more than a tyre width.

The result is beyond expectations for Marchant, who at 23-years-old came up against much more experienced riders and wasn't expected to medal.

Those two medals take GB's tally on the track up to ten, with five golds after Laura Trott sealed gold in the omnium competition earlier on in the night.

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Richard Windsor

Follow on Twitter: @richwindy


Richard is digital editor of Cycling Weekly. Joining the team in 2013, Richard became editor of the website in 2014 and coordinates site content and strategy, leading the news team in coverage of the world's biggest races and working with the tech editor to deliver comprehensive buying guides, reviews, and the latest product news.


An occasional racer, Richard spends most of his time preparing for long-distance touring rides these days, or getting out to the Surrey Hills on the weekend on his Specialized Tarmac SL6 (with an obligatory pub stop of course).