- Australia’s Alex Porter sent flying to the deck in crash
- Team GB men qualify fourth, women go through in second
The track cycling at Tokyo 2020 has begun with high drama and world records, as Great Britain were put on notice that their dominance is at risk. Neither of their Rio gold medal-winning team pursuit quartets qualified fastest on Monday, with the men fortunate to remain in contention to defend their Olympic crown.
But it was a crash by Australia’s Alex Porter that left the small local crowd, a rarity at these Games, holding their collective breath. The 25-year-old’s handlebar came clean off after four laps, sending him flying to the deck in a heavy crash. Thirty minutes later, his team had regrouped and were back in action, finishing fifth and coming within one second of ending Britain’s gold medal hopes.