4th August 2012
Men's Omnium Betting: Ed Clancy can continue the British charge in the Velodrome in the multi-event
Cycling’s equivalent of the heptathlon or decathlon begins on Saturday morning at the Velodrome when the Men’s Omnium gets under way with the one lap sprint. The Omnium is a competition made up of six separate events where points are scored for each event based on the finishing position in that event. First place gets one point, second gets two points, third gets three points and so on and at the end of the six events the man with the lowest points tally will win the gold medal. If the bookmakers are correct that man will be Australian Glenn O’Shea who is the 5/2 favourite with Bodog.
The six events which make up the Omnium are the flying lap, which is a one lap race against the clock, the points race which is a 30km long race where riders sprint for intermediate points every 10 laps, the elimination race which sees a sprint every two laps and the last man at each sprint is eliminated until one man is left, the individual pursuit which for men is 4,000m again racing against the clock, the scratch race which is a straight forward race over 16km for men and the final event is the 1km time trial which is another race against the clock.
The six events combined tests speed, endurance and stamina as well as tactical nous to find our winner over the two day event. O’Shea of Australia comes into this competition as the world champion but we’ve seen a few Australian world champions who thrived in their own arena in Melbourne come to London and bomb out, the latest of whom being the hotly rated Anna Meares in the Women’s Kierin on Friday.
I think O’Shea could be another of those if I’m honest and I have this race between the British rider Ed Clancy and the Canadian silver medallist at the World Championship Zachary Bell. Clancy was edged out for a bronze medal on countback in the World Championship but I expect him to be a lot stronger in this race as all GB riders have been in this Velodrome so far. Bell might be a tough nut to crack but with home advantage in the inspiration the home games are clearly giving to the British cycling team I think Clancy, who should dominate the sprints, pursuits and time trial events in this race, is worth taking at 4/1.
Back E.Clancy to win Men’s Omnium for a 2/10 stake at 5.00 with Paddy Power
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Author: 'Arry Allsports
