Christopher Ashley" />
  • Country

Rio 2016: Keirin Finals

By Christopher Ashley

Britain’s dominance of the track continues with Kenny earning his 6th Olympic Gold in the men’s Keirin.

Jason Kenny’s victory by stealth

Born in Bolton, The Farnworth Flame is something of an enigma. Calm and collected Kenny is difficult to read, and all these traits put him in good stead to deal with the intensity of two unprecedented false starts in the finals.

Room for doubt

Both Kenny and Malaysian finalist Awang looked like they might have passed the back wheel of the pacer before he left the track, but Team GB’s head coach immediately supported his man on the track by giving his input on the footage. Although there was clearly a case for disqualification, misplaced cameras made it impossible for the judges to make an absolute call. Twice.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BJN9xCFA6iO/

Kenny’s game was fire

Third time lucky Kenny played the Keirin perfectly, settling in behind the front runner and using the slipstream to swing up the track to avoid being boxed in. From that point on Kenny looked impressively comfortable increasing the torque and attacking on the outside, taking the lead and holding it along the final straight. Once lit, The Farnworth Flame was impossible to extinguish.