Jan Willem Van Schip celebrates victory in the Points Race on the opening day of the UCI Track World Cup event in Minsk ©Twitter

Dutch riders dominated the podium on the opening day of the Tissot International Cycling Union (UCI) Track Cycling World Cup in Minsk as Jan Willem Van Schip and Kirsten Wild won the two gold medals on offer in the Points races.

Wild became the first winner in what is the final round of the 2017-2018 competition as she scored 45 points in her 20 kilometres final to finish clear of Italy’s Maria Giulia Confalonieri, who accrued 33 points, at the Minsk Arena. 

Anita Yvonne Stenberg of Norway took the bronze medal with 28 points.

Van Schip won gold in the men’s 30km points race, scoring 75 to finish clear of second-placed King Lok Cheung of Korea, who amassed 50 points.

Ivo Oliveira of Portugal took the bronze medal with 41 points.

British champions Team KGF – an independent team of four amateur competitors - were the fastest qualifiers in the men’s team pursuit in 3min 57.202sec.

The World Cup is not restricted to national teams, and the quartet of Charlie Tanfield, Jacob Tipper, Dan Bigham and Jonathan Wale took full advantage of their dominant recent form.

They are due to return to race Switzerland in the first round tomorrow with their eyes on the gold medal final.

The Minsk Arena hosted the 2013 UCI Track Cycling World Championships ©Twitter
The Minsk Arena hosted the 2013 UCI Track Cycling World Championships ©Twitter

In the opening event of the day, the women’s team pursuit, the United States qualified fastest in 4:17.182 ahead of Italy, who clocked 4:24.240, and Canada, who recorded 4:31.761.

The US women are scheduled to meet fourth-placed South Korea in today’s first round.

Britain’s Laren Bate and Georgia Hilleard qualified for tomorrow’s opening round of the women’s team sprint in eighth place with a time of 34.944sec,

Fastest qualifiers were the German pairing of Pauline Grabosch and Emma Hinze, who clocked 33.249, with South Korea’s Wongyeong Kim and Hyejin Lee next fastest with 33.874.

China’s Yufang Guo and Shanju Bao were third fastest in 33.877.

Fastest qualifiers in the men’s team sprint were Beat Cycling Club in 43.850, ahead of France, who clocked 44.042, and third-placed Poland, who recorded 44.182.

The 2,000 capacity Minsk Arena, opened in 2019 at a cost of $350 million (£252 million/€286 million), hosted the UCI Track Cycling World Championships in 2013 and will be among the main venues for next year's European Games in the Belarus capital.

Tomorrow is set see finals for the men's and women's individual and team sprint, the women's omnium and scratch finals and men's keirin and madison finals.