Pendrel was a strong medal contender heading into the 2012 London Olympics as the reigning world champion, but wound up a disappointing ninth.

That result came on the heels of a fourth-place finish in Beijing four years earlier. She bounced back by winning gold ahead of Batty at the 2014 Commonwealth Games before taking silver behind Batty at the Pan Am Games last summer in Toronto.

Pendrel also won gold at the 2014 worlds.

Batty raced to a 24th-place finish at the 2012 Olympics in London despite breaking her collarbone in training a few days before the event.

The 28-year-old was third at the 2016 world championships after taking gold at last summer’s Pan Am Games and silver at the 2014 Commonwealth Games.

The Olympic Mountain Bike Center in Rio’s Deodoro district was surrounded by a heavy military presence on Saturday, with armed soldiers keeping a watchful eye on spectators as they entered the venue in the heart of this gritty neighbourhood.

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Joshua Clipperton, The Canadian Press