Great Britain, in comparison, took only one although they did win medals in seven of the 10 Olympic events. The most likely outcome is that the London 2012 velodrome will produce three golds apiece for Britain and Australia, plus a cluster of silvers and bronzes.
Team riders were at their peak in Holland, there were no mechanical problems, injuries, illness, crashes, or disqualifications. But the perfect wave comes around only once. Beijing 2008 was a campaign touched by the gods, and has been a cross to bear ever since.
Several factors are kicking in. The Australians, who went from winning five gold medals at the Athens Olympics to only a silver in Beijing, are historically the pre-eminent nation and have unearthed a golden generation galvanised by the prospect of hitting back in London. What could be sweeter? That is Australia’s very good fortune and Britain’s headache.
There is a good young British generation coming through, too. Laura Trott, Dani King, Jessica Varnish and Sam Harrison all won medals at the Worlds and show every sign of forming the nucleus of a hugely powerful squad for Rio 2016. But it could be touch and go whether London 2012 is a Games too early.
The old brigade – Sir Chris Hoy (35), Victoria Pendleton (30) and Bradley Wiggins (30) – need to be handled very differently. That trio have achieved everything in their track careers. They have 47 world championship medals, including 24 golds, and eight Olympic golds between them at the past two Games. The only thing left that can possibly get their juices flowing is winning a final gold medal in London.
Certainly for Hoy and Pendleton, both defined by Olympic success, it has been a strangely difficult period. At least Wiggins has a parallel road career to pursue. If Hoy, possibly the most steadfast character in British sport, talks of feeling in limbo you know it has not been plain sailing.
Pendleton spoke about that with real insight on Sunday night, too, after her otherwise satisfactory Worlds campaign ended with a disappointing seventh in the keirin. “Now the Olympics is so big I find it really tough to get up for even the world championships. Everything has moved down a rung. The Worlds feel like a World Cup, the World Cup meetings feel like a national championship and the nationals might as well be a Thursday track league. London 2012 is so off the scale it’s quite difficult to really get geed up for these competitions. I’ve been a bit frustrated with myself; I just feel a bit flat,” she said.
The strong expectation is that Hoy and Pendleton, who still left Apeldoorn with five medals between them, will start hitting their straps again next season.
Nobody can guarantee an Olympic gold but I will be amazed not to see both riders in at least one final. After that, who knows?
Meanwhile, Dave Brailsford has been criticised for trying to ride two horses in his dual role as performance director with British Cycling and team principal with Team Sky.
That was probably valid during the hugely demanding start-up period for Team Sky, though he can argue that he also needed time out and another challenge post-Beijing before “building” again.
Whatever the case back in November, he effectively handed over the day-to-day running of Team Sky to his directeurs sportifs, headed by Sean Yates. Brailsford has hand on the tiller, but he is not the driving force. Since November, he has been the full-time ringmaster of the track programme but that link with Team Sky could yet pay dividends.
While Australia will have to negotiate the release of Travis Meyer and Jack Bobridge from the Garmin-Cervelo team every time they are required, Brailsford is able – in fact, encouraged by Sky chief executive Jeremy Darroch – to put Britain first for 2012.
That means Wiggins and Geraint Thomas will be free to race World Cups on the track this winter and will not be required to take part in the 2012 Tour de France.
“We have got a fight on our hands,” conceded Brailsford as he left Apeldoorn. Indeed. Nobody ever said winning Olympic gold was easy, but it is clear that the success in Beijing suggested otherwise to a British public, who crave a reliable source of patriotic fervour.