Mark Stewart won Great Britain’s fourth medal of the UCI Track Cycling World Championships but there was disappointment for Elinor Barker and Charlie Tanfield on the third day in Apeldoorn.

Stewart claimed bronze in the men’s points race but Tanfield came home fourth in the men’s individual pursuit while Barker finished sixth in the women’s omnium.

Stewart rode a tactically astute race as the 22-year-old Scot twice took a lap on the field to finish with 49 points, edging out Hong Kong’s King Lok Cheung by a single point for the final medal.

And he was delighted to get on the podium after a rough start to the year in which he has spent almost as much time in dentists’ waiting rooms than at the velodrome.

“I went in thinking I’d love a medal here but I wouldn’t be disappointed if I didn’t get on,” he said.

“I’ve had a tough month. I’ve had a lot of dental work with abscesses. I’ve been to the dentist six times already this year so up until about a week ago I hadn’t had a good day.

“Then I started to feel like myself again and thought if I can get a medal I’ll be super happy.”

Australian Cameron Meyer comfortably defended his title with a total of 70 points while Jan Willem van Schip delighted the home crowd by crossing the line first to take the silver medal.

Jan Willem van Schip was a popular winner
Jan Willem van Schip was a popular winner (Peter Dejong/AP)

Barker had started the final event of the omnium, the points race, in the bronze medal position but did not have enough left in the tank to see it through – having only learned she was racing the event on Thursday with Katie Archibald not feeling well enough to defend her title.

Kirsten Wild took the rainbow jersey, a second gold of the championships for the Dutchwoman.

Though a creditable result, Barker could not help but be disappointed at not being able to capitalise on a rare opportunity to ride an event where both Archibald and Laura Kenny excel.

“I’m really, really lucky I got the opportunity and disappointed because I don’t feel like I’m riding my best this week,” she said. “It’s disappointing the opportunity came now rather than a time when I could go well.”

The event saw a frightening crash in the opening scratch race when a rider collided with a UCI commissaire as he retrieved debris from a crash.

The official received lengthy treatment by the trackside before being taken to hospital where he was due to remain overnight. After a 45-minute delay racing resumed in a subdued atmosphere.

Barker had moved up to second by winning the tempo race and was still in medal contention despite picking up bumps and bruises from a crash early in the elimination race.

“I’ve been training for one hard race a day or two four-minute races rather than four 10-20 minutes races,” she said. “It’s just a different ball game. I’m quite happy, I think I’ve got a lot to learn from it.”

However, Barker expressed confidence that both she and Archibald would be ready to compete in the madison on Saturday, while Barker is due to defend her title in the points race on Sunday.

Twenty-four hours after helping Britain win gold in the men’s team pursuit, Tanfield ran out of gas to lose the bronze medal race in the individual pursuit to Russia’s Alexander Evtushenko.

The 21-year-old amateur started out strong, leading by over a second and a half at one point, but it turned out he had started too strongly and he faded badly down the stretch.

“I’m not hedging around here,” he said. “I came here to try to win. I was feeling good but tactically I sort of let myself down. But the main thing is I’ve learned from the experience. Hopefully next year I’ll come back stronger.”

Tanfield’s fellow amateur Dan Bigham finished sixth in qualifying for the event.