More to come from Team GB as Hoy aims to follow Wiggins gold

Hoy and the track team pick up the baton from British hero Bradley Wiggins and the road racers today after the home athletes finally soared to the top step of the podium at London 2012.

Tour de France winner Wiggins made history when he became the most decorated British Olympian of all time with his gold medal in the time trial taking his personal tally from four Olympic Games to seven medals.

His latest tour de force came at Hampton Court, just hours after Heather Stanning and Helen Glover delivered the host nation’s first gold medal on the lake at Eton Dorney.

Britain won five medals in all yesterday to boost their overall total in the Games to nine.

City of York rower Tom Ransley also won a bronze in the men’s eight while Michael Jamieson swam to a silver in the 200m breaststroke last night.

And Chris Froome joined Wiggins on the podium for the second time in 10 days, as he followed up his Tour de France second place with a bronze in the time trial.

The success of Froome and Wiggins followed that of Otley’s Lizzie Armitstead’s who won silver in Sunday’s road race, and now Hoy is warning that Team GB are in just as good form on the track.

Indeed, Hoy’s velodrome squad have an even more fearsome reputation.

They dominated the disciplines in Beijing, winning 12 medals, with Hoy claiming three golds and Yorkshireman Ed Clancy earning one.

Although the track programme has been cut and Hoy can now only defend two of his titles, the Scotsman has warned the best of the boards that the hosts will be just as strong as they were four years ago.

It is his job to get the ball rolling this evening in the team sprint alongside Jason Kenny and Philip Hindes, while Victoria Pendleton and the women’s sprint squad are also in medal action.

Hoy said: “Since the worlds it has gone incredibly well and we have made significant strides. We are going to be at our best since Beijing.

“The teams are so close that any medal would be an achievement, but that’s not saying we are not looking to win gold.

“It is so close between the top teams that if you are in the mix you can win any colour.”

Wiggins has certainly set the bar for the rest of Team GB to follow.

He proved once again that he thrives on the pressure and responsibility with a performance that showed he was unaffected by the nervousness that had seemingly gripped so many home athletes prior to yesterday.

He overtakes Sir Steve Redgrave as the Briton with most medals after winning the 44km time trial by 42 seconds from world champion Tony Martin.

And now he wants to cheer on Hoy and his old track team-mates as they look to build on the success of the road team.

“I want to see the guys in the team pursuit, Chris Hoy and all the other riders on the track,” said Wiggins, who is such a champion that he considers himself behind Redgrave because only four of his medals are gold.

“They bang on about legacy, but the great thing about cycling is that they did not have to build this facility, they didn’t even bother repairing the roads actually.

“It’s a great thing that when the Olympics are over, everyone can grab his bike and ride the Olympic course himself.”

Froome was just as delighted as his colleague Wiggins as he once again showed his potential with a brave bronze.

“I really wasn’t expecting to be in the medal table with so many good time-trialists here,” he said. “Bradley showed again that he is absolutely dominant in this event. And to win gold at home, that’s something he’ll never experience again, and not many people get to experience that kind of victory.”

Yorkshireman Clancy begins the defence of his team pursuit title on what will be a busy few days as the 27-year-old bids for two golds.

As well as the qualification round today, and the semi and final tomorrow, the two-day multi-discipline omnium is contested on Saturday and Sunday.

Geraint Thomas, Steven Burke, Pete Kennaugh and Andy Tennant make up the pursuit squad and Clancy believes all five will be crucial in the bid for victory in the four-man, four-kilometre event ahead of arch-rivals Australia, Russia and New Zealand.

“We’ve got five strong guys that are all pretty equal, so that’s certainly something in our favour,” said Clancy.

“We’ve raced across two days before, but it will be a bit different on the second day, having the semi-finals and finals so close together. But it’s the same for everyone. Every team is going to have to get up to race the finals with tired legs.”

Back out on the road, Armitstead clocked 39mins 26secs for the 29km time trial to finish 10th; a creditable return considering the road race silver medallist considers yesterday’s event to be her weakest. Emma Pooley was Britain’s medal favourite, but she was inconsolable after finishing sixth at Hampton Court.

The 29-year-old from London, world champion in 2010 and silver medallist in Beijing, finished the route in 38mins 37secs as Kristin Armstrong of the United States defended her title.

Defeat will have been all the more difficult to bear for Pooley as she no doubt watched on in envy at Team GBs medal rush.

Rowers Stanning and Glover set the ball rolling with Britain’s first gold medal of the Games in the women’s pairs final on what was a fantastic day for the hosts.

Indeed, there was so very nearly a third gold success in the evening when Jamieson swam the race of his life in the 200m breastroke. Only a new world record from Hungary’s Daniel Gyurta could deny the 23-year-old victory.