Joanna Rowsell has praised the success of her fellow Team England cyclists on the opening two days of action at the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome.

Although Australia have enjoyed most of the success on the track thus far, England have also had bright moments, with Sophie Thornhill and Helen Scott winning gold, the men combining for three silver medals and Jess Varnish claiming bronze in the 500m time trial.

Rowsell added a gold of her own in the 3,000m individual pursuit this afternoon, and she is pleased with the progress that the men in particular have made from their disappointing displays in the World Championships earlier this year.

"I think yesterday the men's team sprint was a really big positive for them getting the silver - a big step up from their World Championship ride," she told reporters.

"The men's team pursuit team also took a massive step up from the World Champs to get silver, a really positive step for them. So for us watching we got quite a lot of inspiration from the guys. Obviously [there was also] the gold for Sophie and Scotty on the tandem, which was brilliant. They're staying in our house with us, so it's great to see them winning the golds.

"And Jess getting bronze as well. So it was a good day for the team yesterday. I quite like racing on the second day of the competition - I like watching it all happen on the first day and get in the atmosphere of it all."

Rowsell is now the defending world and Commonwealth champion in the individual pursuit.