Lowvelder Walter Thornhill (71) showed true grit and raced through the pain barrier to win the bronze medal in the sprint event at the Masters Track Cycling World Championships in Roubaix, France, on October 11.

The championships were held at the Stab Vélodrome from October 5 to 12.

Thornhill had a bad fall during the third sprint and dislocated his right shoulder, but he got right back on the saddle and went on to claim the bronze medal.

His first event was the men’s scratch race, 70-74, on October 7. He claimed fourth place. Thornhill won his first medal, a silver, in the men’s 70-74 time trial on October 8 in a time of 39.343sec.

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He qualified in fourth place in the men’s sprint last Thursday, and went on to beat José Chaar of Argentina in the quarter-finals later the same day.

He and Chaar had each won a ride, and the third sprint created a scenario Thornhill said the commissaire had never encountered before. “It was a dead-heat finish. They blew the image magnification up 600 times and could not distinguish the winner, so we had to ride again. Talk about taking the long route in the championship,” Thornhill said. The South African went on to win the deciding ride.

He faced Steve Small of Great Britain in the semi-finals on Friday. Small rode a big race and won, qualifying for the final. Thornhill would face Wieslaw Raczynski of Poland in the bronze medal race that night. The bronze would also be decided over the best of three sprint rides.

In the deciding third ride, Thornhill crashed, and what followed pushed South Africa’s most-experienced track cyclist way beyond any obstacle he had faced before. “We had both won a ride, being best of three. I lost one ride to him in a tactical blunder. It all happened in the third ride. With a lap and half to go, I was leading from the front and had slowed the pace down tactically. Alas, perhaps a tad too slow, as I slipped touching some repair tape on the track and came tumbling down,” said Thornhill.

“I knew I had fallen badly and lay there, unable to move my right arm. Initially, I thought the collarbone was broken. Lying there, I felt for a protrusion – there was none. My next action was instinctive. Fuelled by adrenaline, I reached across and with my left hand I pulled my right arm across my body. I heard the click. By then the medics were on hand, prodding left, right and centre, and had a stretcher ready to carry me off.

“Adrenaline is a strange thing. Of course, I’m in pain, but I’m there to ride in the championships. I got up to a heartfelt applause from the crowd. I was overcome with emotion and close to tears. The lure of dedication, focus and who knows what drove me on.

“In this instance, it was an automatic re-ride, but it had to be done immediately, failing which the victory would be given to the other rider. It was better that way, because when the surge of adrenaline had ended, I’m not so sure I would have ridden again.

“So in the ride-off I led from the front, opened a corridor that Wieslaw cunningly took advantage of and powered ahead. But I did not have the same grip to aid acceleration. Notwithstanding, I very nearly passed him with inches to spare on the finish line. I accepted my fate, even though I was aware of his technical infringement in him impeding me by coming out of the sprinter’s lane in the last 200m. I decided to let it be and did not appeal. In fact, as we slowed down, there were congratulatory hugs of sportsmanship. But the jury felt otherwise and decided to relegate Wieslaw for the infringement, and the bronze was mine.”

Despite his injury, Thornhill competed in the men’s individual pursuit on Saturday. He finished in sixth position in 02:50.298.

Thornhill is already looking forward to the 2025 Masters Track Cycling World Championships, which will be held at the Stab Vélodrome again.

“My tactical skills need to be honed by then,” he said.