Archibald expecting tough test at Six Day Berlin
BySportsbeat
Published 22/01/2017 at 11:57 GMT
Katie Archibald may have swept all before her on the home boards of London last year but the brit knows she faces stiff opposition if she wants to enjoy similar success at Six Day Berlin.
Eurosport
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Archibald showed no sign of a Rio 2016 Olympic hangover last October when she stormed to the women's title at Six Day London, with Scottish teammate Neah Evans finishing as runner up.
A fractured wrist sustained while picking up gold at the following Track Cycling World Cup event meant a period on the sidelines but Archibald is back and ready to pick up where she left off, in Germany.
She currently lies second in the overall Series standings but could leap to the top of the pile with current leader and fellow Brit Elinor Barker not competing in Berlin.
Fellow Olympic gold medal winning teammate Laura Kenny was originally pencilled in to race but had to pull out with injury, meaning Archibald is flying the flag for Britain.
"I'm really looking forward to Six Day Berlin, I've been stepping up the training in the past few weeks and I just want to get back out there on the track and involved with it all again," she said.
"Everyone is going there to win and I'm no different. It's also going to be good preparation for me for the National Championships. It's a really competitive field.
"I've been working really hard on the turbo trainer, but there's nothing quite like getting out there on the track in the competitive environment.
"Six Day London was fantastic, it was one of the highlights of 2016 for me. I absolutely loved the intimacy of it, the crowd just felt so close and like they were almost breathing on you.
"Obviously it was great to win and come out on top but I know it's going to be tough in Berlin."
One thing Archibald can no longer count on is having home support, that advantage now laying with the German riders such as Anna Knauer, Stephanie Pohl and Charlotte Becker.
But Archibald insists it's not just the home cyclists she has to keep an eye out for when racing gets underway on Sunday – with a stacked field of competitors from right around the globe.
"The Germans are going to be backed by their own crowd this time around and they've got some strong riders," she said.
"There's Anna Knauer and Stephanie Pohl and also Charlotte Becker who I've raced against loads of times.
"Then you also have to take into account Amalie Dideriksen, who is the reigning road world race champion but she's going to be more fine tuned on the track now.
"There's also Canadian Laura Brown who I've raced against at the Commonwealth Games and also [2009 points race World Champion] Giorgia Bronzini.
"It really is too hard to pick. Obviously I was gutted that Laura [Kenny] had to pull out as I enjoy racing with her. But I will be doing my best to win."
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