The most dominant kilo rider of his generation, Jeffrey Hoogland, needed to be persuaded to have a punt at the one-kilometre time trial world record. “He took a lot more convincing than I thought,” his coach, Mehdi Kordi, tells CW. “I said, ‘Do you fancy a trip to Mexico where it can be all about you, and the upshot is that you become the world record holder?
“He was like, ‘I’m not sure. I want to be world champion first.’ I was like, ‘I’m pretty certain you’re going to be world champion on your worst day.’”
Hoogland’s form in the event had, after all, been unrivalled in recent years. He had held the rainbow bands since 2021, and this February became the first person to go under 58 seconds at…