VeloVeritas first spoke to 24 year-old Aussie Jordan Kerby three years ago; he was 2010 world junior points and team pursuit champion but then turned to the road.
Success came quickly and he won the 2013 Australian U23 Road Race Championship.
There followed a forgettable spell with Michael Rasmussen’s ill fated Christina Watches team before he moved back to Australia, winning the 2014 Australian U23 Time Trial Championship.
Whilst he achieved some promising results over the next seasons in the service of the Australian Drapac Pro Continental squad it’s fair to say that he never quite reached the levels he’d promised.
Drapac didn’t retain him for the merger with Cannondale so after some hard thinking, Kerby decided to go back to his first love – the velodrome, for 2017.
The result of his switch could hardly have met with more success – Australian and World Pursuit Champion.
We caught up with him shortly after his Worlds success where he rode the third fastest time ever in qualifying then beat reigning world champion Filippo Ganna of Italy in the final.
The man who we were keeping an eye on, Corentin Ermenault – the European individual and team pursuit champion – finished in fourth spot.
Ermenault has the best of genes; his dad was ex-pro and pursuit world champion, Philippe Ermenault.
Ermenault junior was on the podium in the 2016 U23 Ronde and rides in the colours of Wiggins this year.
But getting back to Mr. Kerby, we caught up with him shortly after his Hong Kong triumph.
Ed's been involved in cycling for over 45 years. In that time he's been a successful time triallist, team manager, and sponsor of several teams and clubs. He's also a respected and successful coach, and during the winter months can often be found working in the cabins at the Six Days. Ed remains a massive fan of the sport and couples his extensive contacts with an inexhaustable enthusiasm for the minutiae and the history of our sport.
Once again we’re proud to bring you an exclusive interview with Olympic Team Pursuit Champion, Katie Archibald where she tells us about her latest triumph, in the World Omnium Championship – and puts us chauvinists at VeloVeritas securely in our box! But we still respect and love the lady.
Two decades, twenty years, it's a long time - especially to ride a bike at world level. But it was 1994 when Australia's Luke Roberts won his first world title in the junior team pursuit. The following year he twinned another victory in the team event with the world junior individual championship for good measure. Two Commonwealth, three world and an Olympic team pursuit title followed. He's ridden Pro Tour with CSC, Milram, Saxo, the Grand Tours, Classics and just about everything there is to ride - including the Six Days.
VeloVeritas has already spoken to brother John about his men’s individual pursuit silver medal and now it’s time to hear what sister Katie has to say about her Games campaign where there was women’s individual pursuit gold in a Games record, points race silver behind Wales’ Elinor Barker and rides in the women’s scratch – where she finished fourth behind Amy Cure of Australia – and on the road in time trial and road race.
We recently ran or tribute to the late, great 'Big Bert' Oosterbosch. It was so well received by our readers that we thought we should re-run a piece from a few years ago which pays tribute to another Dutch chrono and pursuit king - the late, great Roy Schuiten.
I have been hard on the Filippo Ganna, putting in print that perhaps he would never rank among the all-time gallacticos of pursuiting, but the big Italian is proving me wrong so I thought I’d go back and look at the man’s career from day one to where he is now; that’s one of the best chrono men and the best pursuit rider on the planet.
With the Copenhagen six day about to start we thought we’d best have a word with one of Denmark’s track legends; former World and Olympic kilometre champion, Niels Fredborg. A man who was knocking out 1:4 kilometres some 40 years ago...
A DS on the British race scene in the 80’s and 90’s? Easy life – cool team padded jacket, smart team car to drive, the soigneur prepares your packed lunch every day whilst the sponsors are throwing money at you... Well, maybe that last bit needs clarifying; Keith Lambert seemed like a good man to ask.
Ed Hood is a sad old git who is stuck in the minutia of cycling facts and figures! The trouble is that so am I, maybe even worse! Ed was very excited by the book (Tu vueltas) I sent him with all the details of all La Vuelta a España's from 1935 to 2008, lots of info for us sado's.
The thing with riders like JLT Condor's Graham Briggs is that they are very good at what they do, training specifically for these one hour efforts and riding bikes adapted to crit racing with high brackets – it’s hard for English road pros to beat them never mind Scottish riders used to slogging across the moors in wind and rain. But for a crit to be spectacular it needs to be gutter to gutter, handlebar to handlebar – the circuit used for this year's Edinburgh Tour Series event does not produce that kind of race. And like Willard says to the GI in the movie ‘Apocalypse Now !’ – ‘do you know who’s in charge here, soldier?’
Aidan McIlroy (Auchencrow Thistle) backed up his great ride in the recent Gordon Arms time trial to win his own club's promotion, the hilly TT - "Up The Cleugh". Second was Gary Robson, and third Jon Kelly, visiting from the north of England.
As the Giro battles raged from Scandinavia down to the Mediterranean, the next generation of Giro stars went about their business. Take 18 year-old Kiwi, James Oram – in 2011 he won the ‘junior Tour de France,’ the Tour de l’Abitibi in Canada. The likes of Steve Bauer, Laurent Jalabert, Bobby Julich and Andy Hampsten have all ridden in Abitibi so it’s a good indicator of potential.
Back in 2017 we had the pleasure of interviewing former six time British Motor Paced Champion, Roy Cox who despite his results not actually showing it was one of the best in the world behind the big motors. It escaped our notice that we had lost Roy, he passed away in 2019 but our friend and contributor, John Purser decided that Roy’s passing should not go unnoticed and helped us with a tribute to his friend and club mate.
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