Grantown's golden boy strikes again - twice!
Grantown’s medal-winning phenomenon Craig MacLean has, at 43 years of age, claimed an astonishing double-gold triumph at the Glasgow Games, piloting the remarkable Neil Fachie to victory on both Friday and Saturday (today).
Yesterday the pair won Scotland's first Commonwealth Games cycling gold with victory in the Para-cycling 1000m tandem time trial for blind and visually impaired athletes.
They clocked one minute 2.096 seconds, beating Australia's Kieran Modra and Jason Niblett by 0.148secs.
This evening (Saturday) they came from behind in their second event in the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome, to claim victory over the favoured Australian duo of Jason Niblett and Kieran Modra in the final of the men’s sprint B2 tandem, having looked tired in the opening race.
The second was a much closer affair, with a thrilling last-ditch steal taking the issue to the deciding race, where the Fachie-MacLean hunger for success saw them edging out a titanic war of attrition and finally breaking clear at exactly the right moment on the final lap.
MacLean was already only the second athlete, after Hungarian fencer Pal Szekeres, ever to win medals at both the Olympic and Paralympic Games - reresenting Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
He won silver in the team sprint at the Sydney Olympics in 2000 and went on to compete again at the Athens olympiad four years later.
As a sighted guide he has enjoyed continued success - piloting Anthony Kappes to gold at the London OIympics two years ago.
He has already teamed up effectively with fellow Scot Fachie, an Aberdonian, in the UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships in 2011, but the Glasgow Games have taken their partnership to a new level.
He is no stranger to Commonwealth Games success, having won bronze for Scotland in the team sprint at the 2002 games before going on to golden glory for the first time at the 2006 event in Australia.
MacLean was made an MBE in the New Year Honours of 2013 for services to cycling.
For full report and reaction, see Thursday’s “Strathy”.
