UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Melbourne

I have been fortunate recently to undertake a couple of shifts as part of the on-site medical response team at the training sessions for the UCI Track Cycling World Championships at HiSense Arena in Melbourne. Apparently the world class wooden velodrome is permanently in-situ, and seats are dropped down over the track for entertainment events. The steepness of the track makes much more impact in real-life than on television, and in Melbourne is banked to 42 degrees at both ends. It was very interesting to watch elite athletes from around the world going through the different aspects of their training, including riding training bikes on a set of rollers before and after going out on the track, and both the teams and individual sprinters going through their paces. We were stationed right next to the Australian team, which had a large support team of coaches and mechanics for their amazingly sleek track bikes (with no brakes!). The only team member I recognized was World Champion Anna Meares, but it was certainly a privilege to have an insight into their world. In that setting you do not actually want anyone to get injured or require treatment, so we had a good day both times in that no one came to grief and we had a lot of convivial conversation between ourselves, the team of paramedics from Ambulance Victoria and the official UCI doctor from Holland. The competition will be shown on SBS2 over coming days from Wednesday 4 April and promises to be very exciting!

http://www.2012trackworlds.com.au/