Elsewhere for Great Britain on Friday, Emma Finucane had to settle for the silver medal in the women’s sprint final, as 21-year-old Yuan Liying of China secured a straight-ride victory on her way to the title in front of a home crowd.

Sophie Capewell narrowly missed out on bronze in the women’s sprint final, coming out on the wrong side of a photo finish to Japan’s Mina Sato.

Joseph Truman won bronze in the men’s time trial final.

Stewart, who was fourth in the points race at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow this summer, said he was “speechless” to finally claim a world title, and thanked British Cycling and his wife and family for their support.

“It’s a selfish pursuit being an athlete; you kind of lose yourselves in it sometimes,” he told BBC Sport.

“People need to understand you’re a young person with an immense amount of pressure, and it takes years to learn those lessons sometimes.

“Over the last 10 years, the culture change at British Cycling, for the better, has been amazing.”