Geraint Thomas clocked the second fastest individual pursuit time in history in qualifying at the UCI World Cup in Manchester.

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• More Than The Games

The 23-year-old Welshman, part of the gold medal winning team pursuit at the Beijing Olympics, romped home in four minutes 15.015 seconds at the Manchester Velodrome, more than two seconds faster than closest rival Dominique Cornu of Belgium.

That time has only ever been bettered by fellow Brit Chris Boardman, who recorded 4:11.114 in 1996, but both the bike and the Superman riding position he used have since been outlawed.

Thomas, who will now face Cornu for gold in this evening's final, has confirmed his place as Great Britain's premier pursuit cyclist, with reigning Olympic champion Bradley Wiggins opting to concentrate on road cycling.

But Thomas is unlikely to get the chance to bid for individual pursuit gold at London 2012, with the International Olympic Committee expected to ratify proposed changes to the Olympic schedule by the UCI in December.

In striving to achieve gender equality, the UCI have proposed to introduce a women's team sprint and a women's keirin, but the IOC remain insistent that the number of events must not increase beyond ten.

The UCI therefore, plan to do away with both the men's and women's individual pursuits as well as the points races.

The changes would mean there are six sprint events on the schedule (an individual sprint, team sprint and a keirin for men and women) as well as a team pursuit and an omnium for both sexes.