ST George cycling stars, silver medallist Ashlee Ankudinoff and Kaarle McCulloch, have left Belarus with mixed emotions following a world championship campaign of fluctuating fortunes.
For Ankudinoff, it was a chance to prove she has the talent and ability to race at the highest level while McCulloch raced a world title without her famous team mate, Anna Meares.
Ankudinoff, a world champion at 19 with numerous national and Oceania titles, was expected to take her place in the Olympic team to London but was omitted from the team, despite defeating Amy Cure to win the bronze medal in the individual pursuit and become Australia's fastest ever female pursuit rider at the world titles..
She bounced back to beat the best in the World Cup Omnium in November last year taking second place but equal on points with the Olympic and world champion Laura Trott of the UK. She also combined with several other riders to win a silver medal in the World Cup teams pursuit.
She "won" the Cronulla International Grand Prix before being disqualified then backed up the following day to win the Wollongong Grand Prix.
Four gold medals in the Oceania Championships previewed her world championships. And she managed a silver medal with the Australian team in the teams pursuit behind the world champion UK team.
Ankudinoff will become an even more valuable part of the national team following the decision to increase the women's pursuit team from three riders over 3000 metres to four riders over 4000 metres.
Kaarle McCulloch, for so long in the shadow of Anna Meares despite winning many National and Oceania titles, had a championship of missed opportunities.
Winner of three world titles (and a world record) with Meares, including a bronze London Olympic Games medal, McCulloch won two Oceania titles and combined with rising star Stephanie Morton to win the team sprint in Mexico before the worlds.
But she and Morton qualified in fourth place and missed out by just a few metres in claiming the bronze medal in the ride off in the Team Sprint. In the individual time trial McCulloch finished sixth in the 500 metre time trial and seventh in the Sprint — the first time McCulloch has missed a medal at a major championship for five years.
She now heads to Japan for the lucrative international Keirin series.
