PARIS, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) -- New Zealand's quartet produced a surprise when they qualified with the fastest time in the women's cycling team pursuit on Tuesday.
The team of four New Zealand riders set a new national record of 4:04.679 for the 16 laps of the 250-meter track, finishing ahead of the U.S. team, which contained Sunday's road-race gold medal winner Kristen Faulkner, along with Chloe Dyger, and powered to the second-fastest time of 4:05.238.
Britain qualified third with a time of 4:06.710.
Italy were fourth, and there was a surprise at the Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines Velodrome when reigning Olympic champions and world record holders Germany could only manage the fifth-fastest time.
New Zealand will now race Italy in the next round, while the United States and Britain will go head-to-head for the chance to compete in the final.
The level of the competition on show was such that Ireland and Japan, who finished ninth and tenth of the ten teams, both set new national records while failing to qualify.
The Irish quartet knocked three seconds off their previous best to finish in 4.12.447, while Japan slashed nine seconds off their country's best with a time of 4.13.818. ■
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