British cyclist Matt Richardson officially became the fastest track cyclist of all time, breaking the 200-meter individual medley world record at the Konya Velodrome in Turkey.
The Great Britain international became the first man to run 200 metres in under nine seconds. The new best time is 8.941 seconds, with an average speed of 80.5 km/h. The 200 metres flying start individual start is not part of the World Championships events, but is used as a qualifying event to place riders in the main sprint standings. This event is purely a test of sprinter speed.
Richardson competed on a specially adapted Hope-Lotus HB.T bicycle, which Great Britain will use at the 2024 Paris Olympics and other major competitions. The bike featured a new seatpost and 3D-printed handlebars and cranks.
Richardson is the first British cyclist to hold the 200m flying start record. The 26-year-old, who grew up in Australia, switched his citizenship to Britain in August 2024 after the Paris Olympics.
"I did it - I came here for this and that's what I did. It feels really good to be able to accomplish the one goal I came here for. There's a little bit of relief," Richardson said. "It was a lot faster than the previous rides. I was basically a passenger. I steered the bike a little bit and it steered itself. I rode a lot of the distance outside the sprint lane, so there's still room."
