Shanaze Reade admitted she did what she failed to do at the London 2012 Olympics at the UCI BMX Supercross World Cup as Britain celebrated an historic double-double in Manchester.
Reade, who finished sixth at London 2012 last summer, got her World Cup campaign off to a perfect start by winning the time trial on Friday with Liam Phillips following suit for the first British double.
And Reade and Phillips were not to be denied in the main event a day later as they completed a British double-double in the first round of the UCI BMX Supercross World Cup of the season.
Reade took victory ahead of Brooke Crain of the USA and Dutch cyclist Merle van Benthem and insists the start she couldn’t produce at the Olympics last summer she did back on home soil in Manchester.
“At the Olympics I wasn’t able to put the start together that I wanted in the final but here, putting it all together in a solid lap, I was happy with that,” said Reade.
“I believed my start was good enough to win, in training we can look at the times every day, but in the final, when there was the crowd and eight other girls, using that mental strength and putting it all together, that’s the biggest thing I’m happy about.
“Even in the time trial, I didn’t think about the win. I just thought about completing each part of the track as close to ten-out-of-ten as possible, then I believed the result would take care of itself.
“Even on the start gate I only worried about myself, because if I can do the best I can do, I think that was going to win the race.”
Meanwhile Phillips, who finished eighth at London 2012, admitted another victory in front of a home crowd in Manchester was a moment to savour.
“I have family down here, it’s as much a win for them as it is for me really,” he said. “I wanted to get the job done for myself but it’s nice to share that moment with everyone else.
“For me it was just a case of doing another lap, as good as I could. I knew from my time trial, if I’m out front it’s going to be difficult to pass me. I think the inside was key to this weekend.”
© Sportsbeat 2013