Hoy a good bet for keirin Olympic gold after sprint snub

Olympic champion Sir Chris Hoy has been installed as the big 8/11 favourite to win the keirin gold in London this summer.

The cyclist – who won three gold medals at Beijing in 2008 – had been hoping to defend his sprint title but, Team GB selectors plumped for Jason Kenny to ride the individual sprint.

The decision was made as the sprint event is now dominated by Frenchman Gregory Bauge who has won three of the last four world championships (he was stripped of the other because of a doping offence) and may have proved too much for even Hoy to usurp – especially as the Scot hasn’t won a sprint title since 2008.

And that’s something that Hoy seems to understand: “We found out a few weeks ago, it was not out of the blue now. They made the right call,” said Hoy, speaking to the BBC.

“It is not about individual ambition it’s about the team getting the most number of gold medals.”

The decision of the selectors could also benefit Hoy individually though as it allows him to focus on an event that he was already heavily fancied for.

He’s the current reigning world and Olympic champion in the keirin and is still well worth backing at 8/11.

Hoy added: “It means I have got the chance to have a proper recovery between the team sprint and the keirin which is a bit of a luxury really.

“It means I can give it everything in the team sprint and then get that out the way and prepare for the keirin.”

Second favourite is Germany’s Maximilian Levy who won a bronze medal in Beijing in the men’s team sprint and finished second to Hoy in the World Championships this year.