Sunday was “not a good day” for Hong Kong star Ceci Lee Sze-wing, whose UCI Track World Cup campaign ended with a crash, bruises and a failure to add to her success of the opening night.
In fact, Lee’s silver in the elimination race at Hong Kong Velodrome on Friday turned out to be the city’s only medal of the three-day meet in Tseung Kwan O.
Still, head coach Herve Dagorne struck a “very positive” tone when it came to the team’s “massive progress” and regional standing, and said preparations for the Asian Games were on track.
Lee had qualified for the omnium finals with a third-place finish in her heat, battling a world-class field that included New Zealand’s Olympic bronze medallist Ally Wollaston. Lee finished 12th in the scratch race and 13th in the tempo race.
During the elimination race, the third event of the omnium, the 24-year-old collided with Canada’s Fiona Majendie and Poland’s Olga Wankiewicz on a bend. Her jersey and shorts were torn, and she suffered bruising to her thigh.
After the race was briefly neutralised, she insisted on continuing and finished 14th after nine other riders were eliminated.