August 03, 2012
Victoria Pendleton looks on as she waits on an official decision. Photo: Getty Images
Victoria Pendleton and Jess Varnish's dreams of winning gold in the inaugural women's team sprint at the Olympics were shattered after the pair were relegated from the competition.
Pendleton and Varnish had qualified for the gold medal match with China but were later relegated by judges for "an illegal change."
It ends Pendleton's bid for three gold medals at the Games, in which she is also competing in the sprint and keirin.
The Chinese duo Gong Jinjie and Guo Shuang set a new world record of 32.447sec in qualifying fastest for the women's two-lap team sprint.
Minutes earlier the pair had clocked a world record time of 32.526, only to be upstaged by China in the final heat.
The previous record of 32.549sec was set by Germany's Kristina Vogel and Miriam Welte in Melbourne last April.
AFP