Australian cyclists looking to maintain team pursuit dominance

Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (France) (AFP) - Australia will be going for a fifth men's team pursuit gold in six years when the Track Cycling World Championships begin near Paris on Wednesday.

To help boost their efforts, Jack Bobridge is taking a break from road cycling to try to claim gold on the track.

It will be the 25-year-old's first return to the track pursuit team since the Australians were eclipsed by Great Britain in 2012.

The Brits also pipped them to the Olympic title in London.

Bobridge comes into the event just two weeks after a failed attempt to break the world hour record on track, when he fell 500-metres short of the mark set by Austrian Matthias Brandle, although fellow Aussie Rohan Dennis has since taken the record.

Australia's main competition is set to come from the Olympic champions and Denmark.

Britain recently claimed victory in the World Cup series ahead of Australia and have picked a mix of youth and experience for their world championship tilt.

London Olympic gold medallist Steven Burke has made a rapid recovery from a broken collarbone to take his place alongside Ed Clancy and Andy Tennant while youngster Matt Gibson could ride one of the early rounds.

Denmark, who took silver last year in Colombia, are likely to put up a strong challenge with Rasmus Christian Quaade and Casper von Folsach surviving from that quartet.

New Zealand, bronze medallists in 2012 and last year, and Russia could also put in a medal challenge but it is the Commonwealth Games champions Australia, who beat an England squad featuring Bradley Wiggins in Glasgow last year, which will begin as favourites, particularly given the boost of Bobridge's return.

In the women's team pursuit, Britain will be looking to defend their title led by Olympic champions Laura Trott and Joanna Roswell.

Britain, whose team includes Katie Archibald and Elinor Barker, are bidding for a fifth consecutive gold medal in the event.

They also won the only two rounds of the World Cup they started.

Australia, Canada and the United States are likely to provide the competition but perhaps will merely be battling out for the minor medals.

Roswell will also be defending her individual pursuit title and is likely to face strong competition from American Sarah Hammer, who pipped Trott to omnium gold last time out.

Germany are likely to come to the fore in the sprint disciplines with Kristina Vogel leading the way.

The Kazakhstan born athlete won three gold medals last time out and will again be favourite in the individual sprint and keirin.

She and Miriam Welte, the women's 500m timetrial champion, are the reigning world and Olympic champions in the team sprint and will be a tough pair to beat yet again.

Frenchman Francois Pervis will be the star draw at the national velodrome in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines.

The 30-year-old won the individual sprint, timetrial and keirin in Cali.

However, he will face tough competition from triple Olympic champion Jason Kenny of Britain, the 2012 world sprint champion, Germany's 2013 world champion Stefan Boetticher and Russian Denis Dmitriev, a medallist at the last two worlds.

Nineteen gold medals will be decided over the five-day event, although the main focus just over 18-months out from the Rio Olympics will be the Games disciplines of men's and women's team pursuit, individual sprint, team sprint, keirin and omnium.