March 26, 2011 (Apeldoorn, the Netherlands) – The fourth day of competition brought mixed emotions to the Canadian camp as World Cup men’s Omnium champ, Zach Bell, finished 6th overall while Tara Whitten, the reigning women’s World Cup and defending Omnium Worlds champion, sits in second overall after three events.

Bell was 8th heading into the final three events today as he could not match his strong Omnium start yesterday when he won the opening event, the Flying Lap. In the next two events, the Points race he placed 8th, and in the Elimination race he was 16th.

“It’s a bit of a mix-feeling. I think coming here I felt that even if things didn’t go my way, I could still have been in the top 5,” commented Bell in a CCA report. “There were some tactical things that I didn’t get on top of in the first day, and the legs just didn’t come around the way we expected them to, with the training for some of the events.”

The WCup Omnium champ faced a tough challenge on day 4 and was able to regain some ground but the podium was not easily reached given the competitive fields. Bell placed 10th in the Individual Pursuit and then a strong 6th in the Scratch race won by eventual winner Michael Freidberg (Australia).

In the final 1,000m Time Trial Bell was 9th tallying 52 points overall to end up in 6th place behind winner Freidberg with 34 points. Shane Archbold (New Zealand) was second with 38 points and Gijs Van Hoecke of Belgium rounded out the podium with 41 points.

“Today was more positive as I was able to salvage some semi-decent results – which were probably the worst I have had this season,” added Bell, “In terms of moving forward and the Olympics, it’s about getting the job done. Having two of my worst days of the season and finishing sixth is pretty good.”

Whitten, the defending women’s Omnium champ, is being challenged by local star Kirsten Wild of the Netherlands with only two points separating them after three events. Whitten was 2nd in the Flying Lap, 8th in the Points race and 4th in the Elimination Race and sits with 14 points vs Wild’s 12 points.

“I am pretty happy with how the things have gone so far,” commented the reigning world champion. “The Omnium is all about consistency. None of the events were perfect, but I have been near the top in all three. I am pretty excited about tomorrow [Sunday].

“The pursuit is a strong event for me and that will put me in a good position. I just have to race smart in the Scratch and get out of the gate in the 500m time trial.”

Canadian Junior rider Scott Mulder competed in the men’s Keirin today advancing to the Repechage and finished up ranked 19th overall. Shane Perkins (Australia) won the gold, with Sir Chris Hoy (Great Britain) taking silver and Dutchman Teun Mulder winning bronze.

Australian Anna Meares claimed the title in the women’s Sprint over Simona Krupeckaite of Lithuania. British sprinter Victoria Pendleton, the defending champ, was eliminated from the gold medal round by Meares in the semi-finals and ended up taking the bronze over Olga Panarina (Belarousse).

Marianne Vos of the Netherlands claimed the world title in the women’s scratch race, finishing ahead of Australia’s Catherina Bates with Danielle King of Great Britain snagging the bronze.

Australia’s medal haul from today’s four events yielded an impressive three gold and one silver.

Full results here.