\n<\/p>\n
If you want to get a sense of the bedlam of the madison in a sweat box of a Velodrome, you just had to watch Neah Evans be helped off the track after claiming a hard-earned silver medal.<\/b><\/p>\n
Breathless and dripping in sweat, she was draped in an ice vest by one of Team GB\u2019s staff, downed a recovery shake in one and stood for interviews, glistening.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is so chaotic,” Evans says, grinning. “There are other events – I don\u2019t want to demean them – that are more straightforward.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you\u2019re in good shape and execute your plan, you can predict it to a degree. Whereas, in the madison, you can be in the form of your life and someone crashes into you and it\u2019s over.\u201d<\/p>\n
The sights and sounds are astonishing to behold. A crack of a starting pistol, then a low hum of wheels zipping on the wooden boards.<\/p>\n
The track becomes a tumble dryer of colour as the riders jostle for position where there appears to be barely room to exhale.<\/p>\n
Riders are literally flung into action by their partner, as they grip their arm while flying past at stunning speed.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n