'I didn't leave anything out on the track': Matthew Richardson wins Olympic sprint silver

A silver medal could mean heartbreak for some, but not for Matthew Richardson, who can be nothing but proud of winning silver in the track cycling sprint at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

Richardson took on the gold medal final challenge against one of the greatest sprinters of all-time in Dutchman Harrie Lavreysen head-on, but fell short of ultimate Olympic glory in two match sprints.

The Olympic final defeat ended a stirring three-day sprint performance from the Western Australian that started as the brief world record holder of the flying 200-metre in qualifying, after posting a time of 9.091 seconds.

The 25-year-old progressed through every round without dropping a match sprint until facing off against Lavreysen.

"Extremely proud of the silver. I've got bronze and silver now so there's one more to collect and that's what I'm going to try do in the keirin," Richardson said.

"I put my best foot forward, I didn't leave anything out on the track.

"Harrie is a really tough opponent. He's one of the greatest sprinters we've ever seen on this planet so to be up so close to someone like that is still a great achievement.

"It wasn't that many years ago that I was looking up in Harrie just in awe of the gap that he had being so much better than everyone else.

"To be within a few inches of beating him at the highest level in the world is a great achievement for me and I'll use this as motivation to come back stronger next time."

The silver medal is Richardson's second medal of Paris 2024, following bronze in the team sprint alongside Leigh Hoffman and Matthew Glaetzer.

He'll join Glaetzer in the first day of the keirin tomorrow in search of a third medal.

"The keirin is a bit more of a lottery. The more riders there is on the track the less there is you can control it," Richardson said.

"I'm just going to stick to what I know best and ride the best I can, and the result will be the result."

Results

Pictures: Getty Images