20 Sep 2012

German favourite atones for London

11:24 am on 20 September 2012

The German cyclist Tony Martin lived up to expectations when he edged out the American Taylor Phinney by just five seconds to retain his individual time trial world title at the world road cycling championships in the Netherlands.

The win capped a tough season for favourite Martin, who broke his wrist on the Tour de France and had to settle for silver in the Olympic time trial behind Britain's Bradley Wiggins.

Wiggins, who will start Sunday night's road race, skipped the event after an exhausting year that saw him become the first Briton to win the Tour de France before winning Olympic gold in London.