Netherlands smash world record to win men's team sprint gold

Powerhouse Dutchman Harrie Lavreysen led the Netherlands to the men's team sprint cycling gold medal on Tuesday in new world record time to successfully defend their title.

Partnered with Roy van den Berg and Jeffrey Hoogland, they clocked a blistering 40.949secs at Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines velodrome to consign Britain to silver. Australia took the bronze.

It was their second world record of the session after posting 41.191 in the heats to better the 41.225 they set at Berlin in 2020.

The same trio won gold in Tokyo three years ago, ending the dominant reign of the Jason Kenny-led British team that owned the title in Beijing, London and Rio.

This time Britain's Ed Lowe, Hamish Turnbull and Jack Carlin were no match for the speed, strategy and power of a Dutch team that has been dominant since 2018 when they claimed their first world title.

They won four of the subsequent five world championships and are now back-to-back Olympic gold medallists.