Medals are coming home

Waipā and King Country riders are bringing 11 medals home from the Para Cycling Track World Championships in Brazil.

Ōtorohanga’s Nicole Murray, now based in Cambridge, won five – gold, two silvers and two bronze.

Two Cambridge riders, Devon Briggs set a world record – then broke it – on his way to collecting gold, a silver and two bronze medals and Anna Taylor picked up a silver and a bronze.

Nicole Murray.

Rio de Janeiro 2024 was the first track cycling event of the Paralympic Year and one of the final opportunities to secure qualification points for the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games to be staged in August and September.

New Zealand sent five athletes – the other two were Ben Westenberg (Tauranga) and Cambridge’s Nick Blincoe.

Briggs, 20, bettered the world record in his C3 Kilo qualifier, and then bettered it in the final.

Devon Briggs at 2024 Para-Cycling Track World Championships – Rio de Janeiro/ Brazil

“I came into the day wanting to get the world record and we smashed it out of the park,” he said on the night of his win. “And to come in again tonight, breaking my own world record and getting rainbows on top of that, I’m so stoked.”

Murray claimed a gold, silver, and a bronze medal on the last day – Monday. She made the podium for every event she entered.

Briggs, who attended Cambridge High School, finished the final day with a second bronze and a siler to bring his haul to four. The bronze was not without cost, as another rider clipped his bike, causing him to crash toward the end of the race.

Briggs escaped without major injury and received the bronze medal as the athlete who caused the crash was disqualified.

The medal total was one better than the previous best of 10 at the last word champs.

Nicole Murray

from left, Ben Westenberg (Tauranga), Nick Blincoe (Cambridge), Anna Taylor (Cambridge), Devon Briggs (Cambridge), Nicole Murray (Otorohanga). Photo: Paralympics New Zealand.

More Recent Sports

Jane’s two-day plus marathon

Cambridge’s Jane McAlpine set a New Zealand women’s record last week in Queensland at the Dead Cow Gully Backyard Masters, running 355km in 53 hours. The Te Awamutu College alumna is coached by fellow New…

Czyk burns out in Spain

Wotjek Czyz caused the big upset in the second round at the Parastanding World Tennis championships in Spain last week only to dip out in the quarter finals. The Cambridge Paralympian beat France’s Cédric Delmas…

Swim Fest launched

Lake Karāpiro will host a two-day festival of swimming next year, the first of its type in New Zealand, say organisers. The combination of swimming events, community activities and lakeside entertainment will make the lake…

New caps and victories

Te Awamutu Sports and Hautapu claimed wins on Matariki weekend, while the Cambridge-based side has a new All Black cap in their ranks. Chiefs prop Ollie Norris has joined fellow Hautapu club man Luke Jacobson…