Kent knows his target time

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 33010, 1 September 1972, Page 6

Kent knows his target time

The Commonwealth champion from Wellington, H. D. Kent, will probably have to beat his previous best time by about 2sec to get among the medal-winners in the 1000-metre time trial today.

"I predict that it will take about Imin 6sec to be a medal contender,” the cycling manager, Mr C. J. Hollows, said yesterday. “This means that Harry will have to improve on his Imin B.69sec ride which won him

the gold medal at the Edinburgh two years ago.” Mr Hollows feels, however, that Kent, if he strikes top form on the night, is capable of being in contention. “Harry is in great physical and mental shape for this race,” he said. “Also, the track here is a real beauty, and if the conditions are right there will be some very fast times.” The Trentham nurseryman has been handling the track well and feels completely at home on it. Kent has drawn place 15 in the field of 33 riders, which should give him a good indication of the way things are going by the time he competes. Favourite for the gold medal, and the top seed, is the world champion, Eduard Rapp, of Russia. He won the world title in Italy last year in Imin 7.sBsec. Two other danger men in the field are Pierre Trentin (France) and Karl Koether (West Germany). No qualifying time is given in the official draw for Trentin, but Koether is credited with Imin

6.575ec, which he recorded on the Olympic track recently. “We were at the track the night Koether set his time,” said Mr Hollows. “Two nights later, Kent was o.3osec faster over 600 metres than Koether had been.” The two fastest men in the field on qualifying times are Janusz Kierzkowski (Poland) and Anton Tkac (Czechoslovakia). They have marks of Imin 4.6 sec and Imin 6.9 sec,

respectively, but little is known of their present form. Riders who will compete before Kent, and will give the New Zealander his best indication of what he may have to beat, are the Australian, Danny Clarke, and Neils Fredborg (Denmark), who took the gold medal over Kent in the 1970 world championships at Leicester. The Dane rides fourteenth, one ahead of Kent.