Matthew Glaetzer and Matthew Richardson end Paris 2024 Olympic Games on a high with keirin medals

Dutch legend Harrie Lavreysen rolled as much as the highest of the monitor, kissed his accomplice and rolled off once more as undisputed king of the velodrome at Paris 2024.

After the chaos of the keirin, it was he who stood tall once more to comb the dash medals on the Vélodrome Nationwide.

Beneath him, Britain’s Jack Carlin was writhing on the aspect of the monitor, his velocity swimsuit having been half-ripped off his physique, a burning odour wafting up into the stands.

Shinji Nakano and Muhammad Shah Firdaus bin Sahrom had been additionally on the deck, the latter soon-to-be relegated for his position in inflicting the crash.

On the opposite aspect of the monitor, Matthew Glaetzer and Matthew Richardson stood, arm-in-arm on the banked monitor with an Australia flag draped throughout them.

In Tokyo three years in the past, Australian biking was in disarray. One bronze medal was all they needed to present for a program with aspirations as lofty as their finances.

Australia’s return at this Video games was 5 medals, one gold, two silver and two bronze, their finest return since that heady summer time in Athens in 2004.

Richardson, recent from his silver medal within the particular person dash, additionally behind Dutch legend Lavreysen, was about to get his second silver.

“All I wished as we speak was to make that keirin remaining and put myself able to win the race,” Richardson mentioned.

“I gave it my absolute all. I pushed Harrie all the way in which to the road.

“We did the quickest keirin we have ever performed in that remaining with a 9.3 [averaging 76.620km/h]. 

“That will have out-qualified 90 per cent of the sector on dash day, so it simply confirmed the place the extent was at and the way laborious we pushed one another.”

Legend on a unique sort of monitor, Michael Johnson of athletics fame, wrote a poignant put up on X on Saturday. 

“Profitable Olympic medals is tough. Even in the event you had been favorite for gold and ended up with silver or bronze it was laborious,” he wrote.

“That is greatness. Perhaps not biggest on the day, however that is greatness.”

ABC Sport is reside running a blog daily of the Paris Olympics

Lavreysen has confirmed his greatness, untouchable with three gold medals — which he revealed on his remaining podium in a single, boss flourish — including to the 2 golds he received in Tokyo.

He’s effectively on the way in which in the direction of the all time greats like six-time gold medal winner Sir Chris Hoy.

However now Glaetzer and Richardson can justifiably add their names to the checklist.

They weren’t favourites to win gold right here, however in progressing very neatly by means of the tough and tumble of the six-man heats to achieve the gold medal race, they had been pretty much as good an opportunity of medalling as anybody.

That comes with strain for 2 males who’ve felt the heartache of ending fourth greater than most.

And it is from the top.

As these Video games wind down, Los Angeles looms massive for Richardson.

“In Tokyo I completed like seventeenth within the dash, fourth within the crew dash and nowhere within the keirin, and that was solely three years in the past,” he mentioned.

“I’ve received large ambitions for the subsequent 4 years. I am solely 25. We noticed folks like Chris Hoy, Jason Kenny win their sixth and seventh Olympic gold medals of their early to mid-30s. 

“I believe Chris was 36 when he received his sixth medal.

“He reveals you that it may be performed.”

That is not true for Glaetzer although, who mentioned this could be it for his Olympic profession, a profession during which he has endured a lot on and off the monitor.

Glaetzer, the most important beneficiary of the crash that eradicated half the sector, was about to be offered along with his first particular person Olympic medal and second total on the Video games.

Having competed in 4 Olympic finals and completed fourth each time previous to Paris, he knew this was his final probability.

After that bronze Glaetzer, who admitted he had considered giving the game away after Tokyo, mentioned he had “lastly received the monkey off the again”. 

And the way.

Positive, there was a level of fortune within the chaos that unfolded in entrance of him, however this was nonetheless a surprising end result for the 31-year-old from Adelaide.

“It was little little bit of an early transfer ultimately, however I wished to verify I did not get caught out,” Glaetzer mentioned post-race.

“In the long run, I stayed on my bike, dodged the chaos, crossed the road and felt blessed to get a person medal.

“That was an instance of what might occur in a Keirin. Actually something.

“To return away from my remaining Olympics, with a person medal … I knew it was potential however issues needed to fall my approach and it actually did as we speak.”

Lastly, there was some luck for the South Australian the place it had abandoned him a lot.

However to place a fortunate spin on that is disrespectful to the trials and tribulations he has gone by means of — even when his spouse informed Channel 9 he’d “performed a Bradbury”.