Support truly
independent journalism
Anna Henderson survived the slippery, treacherous roads of Paris to snatch Olympic time trial silver by less than one second but there was frustration for Josh Tarling as a puncture cost him his shot at gold.
On a damp day that saw several riders crash, Henderson clocked a time of 41 minutes 10.7 seconds over the 32.4km course, one minute and 31 seconds down on Australian Grace Brown’s gold medal-winning ride.
Two-time world champion Chloe Dygert was among those to go down, and although the American fought her way to the line, she finished nine tenths of a second off the pace of a delighted Henderson.
“I had half an eye on a dream on the podium, and I didn’t think I could come this far on the podium so I’m really pleased,” the 25-year-old said.
But it was a very different story for Tarling in the men’s race as a flat front tyre cost the 20-year-old Welshman a podium spot and perhaps even gold as he finished fourth, two seconds behind third-placed Wout Van Aert and 28 seconds off world champion Remco Evenepoel’s gold medal-winning time.
“It happens, I guess,” a dejected Tarling said. “There’s nothing I can do.”
Steady rain made slick a course that set off from the Esplanade des Invalides and went east before doubling back to the Pont Alexandre III in front of the Grand Palais, and the crashes began early in the women’s race.
American Taylor Knibb hit the deck three times and even her mechanic fell over trying to give her a new bike. Dygert, her season already hit by illness and injury, crashed just before the second time check, and was clearly in pain as she hobbled to post-race interviews with the help of team staff.
But Henderson, 25, got the power down to secure the biggest result of her career to date.
“I didn’t realise how slippery it was out there until I was on the course,” Henderson said. “I thought I can lose a whole Olympic Games on one corner here, so really take control and you gain all the good time on the straights.”
I didn’t realise how slippery it was out there until I was on the course.....I thought I can lose a whole Olympic Games on one corner— Anna Henderson
Henderson, a former junior national slalom champion who dreamed of competing at a Winter Olympics, was two seconds off bronze at last year’s world championships in Glasgow before claiming silver at the Euros a few months later.
The Hemel Hempstead-born rider came to Paris as an obvious contender but one happy to stay under the radar after a start to the season which saw her break her collarbone twice, most recently in April, before winning a second British time trial title in June.
“I was pretty much on my bike three days after the surgery (in April),” she said. “The second (broken collarbone) mentally hurt a lot and it got a lot to get back the motivation again but I always had Paris on my mind and that really carried me through.”
Tarling had been seen as the bigger medal hope, but things unravelled early into his ride.
“I hit some bumps, I felt the rim (go), I had to change before the corner,” he said. “It was hard to get back into the rhythm and settle down and stop thinking after that. Everyone else did such a good ride, it would have been hard to catch back up.
“I think everyone who got a medal deserved it. They all kept the pressure on, there was nothing I could do.”
