Cornish proves a cut above the rest

With his skin and NSW blue lycra cycling outfit ripped and torn from a crash at Brisbane’s Anna Meares Velodrome, Thomas Cornish recorded a courageous victory to capture his first national title in five years.

The latest stage of the 26-year-old’s metamorphosis from sprint star to endurance rider saw Cornish – a New South Wales Institute of Sport (NSWIS) scholarship holder – outsprint reigning champion, and NSW teammate, Kurt Eather in a thrilling final lap.

“I made a bit of a mistake at the start,” Cornish told AustCycling’s Andrew Bryan when quizzed about the early crash, while photographer Con Chronis captured the aftermath of the spill.  

“I was trying to reposition, and I wasn’t watching the wheel in front of me and came down. Luckily it was only a bit of skin, and I was fine, and the bike was fine, and I was able to get back in. 

“I was probably a bit more cautious after that, and I sort of rode from the back.”

Cornish, who came to prominence in 2018 when he broke the junior world record and won gold in the kilometre time trial at the UCI Junior Track World Championships, didn’t hide the significance of his title-clinching victory.

“I can’t remember the last time I won a national title, so to do it now, my first time as an endurance rider, I’m pretty happy with that.”

The cherished national title now sits alongside the Oceania scratch race championship crown he seized earlier this year.

Fellow NSWIS scholarship holder,  Nicole Duncan – who once described pushing herself through the pain barrier as going through ‘hell’ on two wheels because everything feels as though it’s on fire – won her first individual national title in the elite women’s elimination race.

The 20-year-old held her nerve in a strategic ride, before sprinting past South Australia’s Sophie Edwards in the final lap. 

“I’m pretty speechless, I was sore from three days of racing,” Duncan told AusCycling. “I was hoping she didn’t go long, my legs were pretty sore, so when she went to the front it was my kind of sprint. 

“This is where I thrive, I left it as late as possible because I knew I could get the kick on her.”

Photos: Con Chronis

Words: Daniel Lane, NSWIS and Andrew Bryan