Jon Eley is a happy man after a successful weekend for Great Britain’s short track speed skaters. Here’s our review of the last 24 hours.
Great Britain team manager Jon Eley insists that ten medals at the Star Class short track speed skating event in Nottingham is the perfect preparation for the upcoming European and World Championships Sunday was the last of three days of skating with Jack Whelbourne and Paul Stanley ensuring a British one-two in the men's 1000m while Kathryn Thomson took gold in the women's 1000m as the highlights. That added to Thomson's 1500m bronze from Friday and her 500m gold won on Saturday, which meant she also took the overall crown. The European Championships will take place in Sochi, Russia from January 22-24 while the World Championships are being held in Seoul in March. And Eley insists his troops gaining that winning feeling in Nottingham can only stand them in good stead moving forward. "The team were fantastic this weekend. It has been a real pleasure having opportunity to work with them all as the team manager," said Eley. "With the European and World Championships coming up over the next few months it has been great to get the skaters into the winning habit, one which we hope will continue."
Andrew Musgrave completed the Tour de Ski in 40th place, covering the multiple stages in 4 hours, 4 minutes and 47 secs. Exhausted after his eight stages in 10 days, Muzzy finished 18 minutes behind overall winner, Norway’s Martin Johnsrud Sundby.
“Now back to my own apartment for the first time since October for a bit of rest and relaxation,” he tweeted.
British cyclist Victoria Williamson is in stable condition in hospital after suffering a serious crash at the Rotterdam Six-Day event. Williamson collided with Dutch rider Elis Ligtlee in a sprint heat which left her with fractures to the pelvis and several vertebrae as well as a cut right flank. Racing was cancelled and fans were asked to leave the arena following the injury to the 22-year-old, who won team sprint bronze alongside Becky James at the 2013 World Championships. She will remain in a Rotterdam hospital for a few days but Great Britain Cycling sprint coach Justin Grace is hopeful of a full recovery. "Victoria is being very well looked after here in Rotterdam and the well-wishes people have been sending her are very much appreciated," said Grace. "She gave us all a scare and while her injuries are serious they are not life-threatening. "From a performance point of view this is another injury to deal with – Victoria has a long road to recovery ahead of her but her health is the highest priority for the whole team and we'll make sure she receives the best possible care."
The future is clearly bright for British Bobsleigh after their junior team dominated rivals in qualifying races for next month's Winter Youth Olympics in Innsbruck. Kelsea Purchall, Annabel Chaffey and Aimee Davey have seen off all comers throughout a series of seven races across Europe and North America, finishing 1-2-3 on the podium. And their success has been all but mirrored by the boy’s team of George Johnston, Ed Himbury and Adam Hames. Johnston matched Purchall in ending the qualifiers as the world’s best, with Himbury not far behind in third and Hames fourth as GB won close to half the 42 medals on offer. “One thing I’ve dreamt of my whole sporting career is to see three Union flags raised on a medal podium. And that dream has now become a reality,” Great Britain Bobsleigh Performance Director Gary Anderson told the BBSA website.