Tasmania’s Georgia Baker has joined an elite club of Australian athletes by winning her fifth career Commonwealth Games gold medal today (AEST).
Victory in the women’s scratch race in Glasgow brings her parallel with Anna Meares, Brad McGee and Matthew Glaetzer with the most Commonwealth gold medals won in cycling by an Australian.
Outstanding teamwork set up Baker for the win on Saturday morning.
Baker and Sophie Edwards were both active towards the front of the 10-kilometre race before a decisive lead-out by Alyssa Polites brought Baker to the head of the race with one lap to go.
From there, the 32-year-old held with a powerful sprint to win the gold medal.
Edwards, Baker and Polites combined to deliver the victory.
“That was our dream run for me into the final two laps with Alyssa in front of me,” Baker said. “She can read the race really well.
“To know I can put my trust in her, to know when to move, made my job really easy. I was able to come over the top and hold on.”
Baker, who won three gold medals at Birmingham 2022 across track and road cycling, and won another gold in the team pursuit yesterday, said her best friend and fellow cyclist Alex Manly had alerted her of the impending milestone.
“I was like, wow, I didn’t realise that statistic. It’s very good company and it’s an honour to be in that list,” Baker said.
The faultless execution in the scratch race was also a morale boost for Australia’s endurance women after a frustrating and disappointing start to day two.
Felicity Wilson-Haffenden was disqualified from contesting the individual pursuit bronze medal race because of her shoulder strapping, which commissaires deemed to have modified her morphology.
Edwards was also disqualified from the pursuit because of too much padding in her helmet.
Baker will have more opportunities to add to her medal tally this weekend, with the elimination and a title defence in the points race still to come.
Photos: SWpix.com