AS if racing A grade at the Footscray Cycling Club’s summer criteriums at the VUT track in Hoppers Crossing wasn’t already tough enough, competitors got to test their mettle against six-times national track champion and Olympian Joel Leonard, who returned to racing after a year off the bike.
Leonard, 31, from Ascot Vale, was not overly confident of his chances of winning pre-race but was keen to get back to racing.
“A few mates have been trying to get me back on the bike, and I found that when I did the fire was still in the belly, so I thought it was the right time to start racing again,” he said.
Leonard spent much of the race driving hard on the front, with a few select riders able to swap turns on the front with him. He duly took the win, crossing the line a wheel ahead of Dom Dudkiewicz, who was well clear of third-placed Richard Braic.
