TOKYO: An unexpected early sprint by defending champion Jason Kenny of Great Britain thwarted national track cycling ace Datuk Mohd Azizulhasni Awang’s bid to deliver Malaysia its first-ever Olympic gold medal at the Izu Velodrome in Shizuoka today.

As the dust settled on a dramatic men’s keirin final, which saw Kenny powering to the gold medal, Azizulhasni had to be contented with a hard-fought silver as Dutchman Harrie Lavreysen, who won gold in the men’s sprint, settled for bronze.