N.Z. pursuit team fails to qualify

Press, 24 September 1988, Page 28

N.Z. pursuit team fails to qualify

NZPA Seoul In spite of riding one of the fastest times by a New Zealand cycling combination, the 4000-metre pursuit team failed to get past the Olympic qualifying heats last evening. The team — Craig Connell, Nigel Donnelly, Andrew Whitford and Stuart Williams — recorded four minutes 26.13 seconds, finishing fourteenth in the 19-strong field. The top eight qualified. The coach, Ron Cheatley, said he had set a target of 4:20 and the team was on that pace until Stuart Williams dropped off with one and a half of the 12 laps to go. “We did 4:23 last year at the world championship^6 but that was on an

indoor track,” Mr Cheatley said. “This was a better performance than that, being outside, and it is just a pity we didn’t qualify. We did easily the fastest time by a New Zealand team at sea level. “The conditions out there aren’t all that good and their capability would possibly have been only two seconds faster.” Mr Cheatley said the team was on target until the 2000 m but did not blame Williams who had suffered from a virus earlier in the week. He also had no regrets in leaving star rider Gary Anderson out of the team. “This is a good combination and we should stick to it,” he said. “There are one or two guys'fc’back

home who we should add ,to it but all of these blokes are young and capable.”

The highlight of the qualifying rounds was the breaking of the world record twice. The Australians shattered the 4:17.71 set by a Czechoslovakia combination in 1986 when they hurtled around the velodrome in 4:16.32. That time was bettered by the Soviet Union in the last ride of the round with a scintillating 4:16.10. France, 4:17.19, was the third fastest qualifier. © The Frenchman, Georg Boehm defeated New Zealand’s Barry Griffiths 21-12, 18-21, 21-15, 21-17 in a Group B Olympic table tennis singles match yesterday. The singles competition

is being contested by 64 players in eight groups of eight who play each other in a round-robin competition. The top two players from each group then go through to a knockout competition. 0 The skeet shooters, John Woolley and John Farrell, have failed to make the final 24 in the Olympic eliminations at the Taenung International Shooting Range: Woolley finished in thirty-third position — seven shots off a possible 150. Further back in fiftyfirst place — 13 shots away from the possible — was John Farrell. The top 50 shooters, headed by ' Czechoslovakia’s Leos Hlavacek, Daniel Carlisle (United States) Alfonso De Iruar-

rizaga (Chile) and Valeri Timokhine (Russia) who are all on 149, will fire 50 targets today. The top eight competitors at the end of the morning session will contest the afternoon final. • The New Zealand tennis players, Kelly Evernden and Bruce Berlin, won their first round Olympic doubles match when Argentina’s Martin Jaite was forced to withdraw hurt. The New Zealanders were in a commanding 64, 4-1 position when Jaite withdrew from the match because of a leg problem. Evernden and Berlin are expected to play the Australians, Barren Cahill and John Fitzgerald in a second round match tomorrow.