UCI Track Champions League 2023 – 1 – Mallorca

October 21, 2023

UCI Track Champions League 2023 – Mallorca, Spain 🇪🇸

The Track Champions League (TCL) is a new event looking to revolutionise and revive the sport of track cycling. With a focus on fast-paced, easy-to-understand races, this event is perfect for newcomers to the sport, as well as diehard fans. The league comprises five international rounds held over three action-packed weeks. Riders earn points through their results in these events. Points accumulate over the five weeks and, at the end, those with the most will be declared the winners of their respective Sprint League or Endurance League. Whatsmore, prize money for both men and women across the competitions is equal!

The UCI Track Champions League made a triumphant return at the Velodrom Illes Balears in Mallorca this evening, with the world’s best track cyclists battling it out for glory in front of some incredible Spanish support.

Harrie Lavreysen (Netherlands), Alessa-Catriona Pröpster (Germany), Eiya Hashimoto (Japan) and Katie Archibald (Great Britain) were the first riders to be awarded the leaders’ blue jerseys after sweeping to top of their respective standings.

Lavreysen was the night’s top performer, winning the Men’s Sprint and then following that up with another victory in the Keirin. Archibald took second place in the Women’s Scratch before going one better in the Elimination, while Pröpster, Ellesse Andrews (New Zealand) and Hashimoto both enjoyed dream debuts, winning the Women’s Sprint, Keirin and Men’s Scratch races respectively. Lily Williams (USA) and Dylan Bibic (Canada) also celebrated triumphs in the Women’s Scratch and Men’s Elimination.

HOW THE ACTION UNFOLDED

Hashimoto’s Men’s Endurance win came after the Japanese rider managed to work his way into a seven-rider breakaway which featured home favourite Sebastián Mora (Spain) and defending champion Claudio Imhof (Switzerland), who gained a lap on the field with four laps to go. Hashimoto then proved the fastest finisher of those seven riders, claiming his triumph ahead of Mark Stewart (Great Britain) and Tuur Dens (Belgium).

In the Women’s Scratch, Williams broke clear with Archibald early on and that duo managed to evade their pursuers, with Williams pulling away from her accomplice on the final lap to take a comfortable win.

UCI World Sprint Champion Lavreysen proved dominant in the Men’s Sprint final, earning himself a brilliant victory over Tom Derache (France). Derache had led out the sprint heading into the bell lap, but Lavreysen rounded his rival on the outside in the closing stages before wrapping up his victory by several bike lengths.

Pröpster got her UCI Track Champions League career off to the perfect start by claiming a surprise win over UCI World Champion Emma Finucane (Great Britain) in the Women’s Sprint final. Pröpster ignited the action by pulling ahead in the penultimate lap and the gap ultimately proved too large for Finucane to overcome, with Pröpster crossing the line half a bike ahead of her rival.

A huge crash sent all but seven riders onto the deck in the Men’s Elimination which meant the race had to be stopped and restarted, and once it had done so, it proved to be an enthralling contest which saw William Tidball (Great Britain) and Bibic going head-to-head for the victory. Bibic hit out early leading into the last lap and the pace he set proved too much for Tidball, who fell back before the finish, allowing Bibic to cross the line with his arms aloft.

The Women’s Elimination proved equally entertaining, with Scratch winner Williams dropping out in the last three leaving Archibald and Anita Stenberg (Norway) to duke it out for the win. It was Archibald who proved the strongest finisher, passing Stenberg as she began the last lap before riding away from her opponent to seal a well-deserved triumph.

Lavreysen and Matthew Richardson (Australia) lit up the Men’s Keirin final, marking each other from the start and leaving it late to move up the field. That meant UCI World Champion Kevin Quintero (Columbia) stole a march on that duo initially, with Lavreysen the only able to pass the South American inches before crossing the line. Quintero meanwhile, held on to second place, just ahead of Richardson.

Finally, in the Women’s Keirin final, Andrews didn’t put a foot wrong, leading from the front and holding off a late charge from Pröpster to honour the rainbow stripes in the best possible way.

ALL THE REACTION FROM ROUND 1:

Women’s Sprint leader and Sprint Race winner Alessa-Catriona Pröpster (Germany) said: “That was a really hard Sprint final for me because I was on the front for a long time. I know Emma [Finucane] is so strong coming from behind, so I couldn’t think about anything else except to push on. It was great to get that win, and being in the overall lead is unexpected and unbelievable, and I’m proud to be in the blue jersey. I’m looking forward to the next few rounds – my motto in life is to have fun and ride my bike, so we’ll see how this season goes.”

Women’s Endurance leader and Elimination winner Katie Archibald (Great Britain) said: “That was good but tough. I was expecting some nerves after watching the crash in the Men’s Elimination because it’s the first big crash I’ve seen in the UCI Track Champions League. Once I got on the track though I was fine, and it was a clean and hard race in front of an amazing crowd. The Elimination is my favourite event so it feels really good to have won it. My aim now is to be consistent in the next rounds.”

Men’s Sprint leader, and winner of both the Sprint and Keirin races, Harrie Lavreysen (Netherlands) said: “The Sprint final was really good. It was a bit weird having had three riders in the heats and only two of us in the final, and we started pushing a little earlier than usual, which maybe wasn’t necessary. The sprint was pretty quick and decided on the last lap, and I was feeling good.

“As for the Keirin final, that was a really good, tactical race. I had Kevin [Quintero] in front of me and Matthew [Richardson] behind me, which allowed me to control the race, and I picked the right moment to go. It feels really good to have started like this, without any mistakes, so I am happy. Consistency is key in the UCI Track Champions League so I need to recover well now so I am fresh for Berlin, and focus on that.”

Men’s Endurance leader and Scratch winner Eiya Hashimoto (Japan) said: “I went into the Scratch race feeling really good because these short races suit my style, and I felt relaxed throughout the race, even when I made it into that breakaway. Many riders in there were stronger than me, so I am proud to have won that race and I can’t believe I’m wearing the blue jersey tonight. I obviously want to keep it and I’m going to race aggressively to try and defend it. If I do so in Berlin, I will be very happy.”

Women’s Keirin winner Ellesse Andrews (New Zealand) said: “I was making sure I was aware of my surroundings so I could make my move when I really wanted to, and it played out well for me. It’s been a great round here in Mallorca and I’m looking forward to the weeks to come. I’m hoping for more of the same and just giving my best in every race. The atmosphere was amazing, I love a good groove, so I loved the music before and after the races as well.”

Women’s Scratch winner Lily Williams (United States) said: “The Scratch is a super-short race so you just have to commit to any moves that go. Luckily me and Katie worked pretty well together and I managed to hold it together to the line, so I’m very happy. It’s been a while since I last won a race, so this feels really good.”

Men’s Elimination winner Dylan Bibic (Canada) said: “I wasn’t happy with my performance in the Scratch – I made a mistake and had it in my head that ‘I’m winning this – there’s no other option – and I’m going to do whatever it takes’. I raced my heart out to get to the final two and then it was great to beat Will [Tidball]. This is the best I’ve been feeling all year and going all in this season, giving everything I’ve got to get as many wins as possible, and then hopefully the overall standings will look after themselves.”

Gilles Peruzzi, Head of Track, Para-cycling & Indoor Cycling at the UCI, said: “The racing this evening was as exciting as ever and it’s great to have the UCI Track Champions League back in action. We’ve seen familiar faces like Harrie Lavreysen and Katie Archibald continuing their incredible form in this series, and then new faces like Alessa-Catriona Pröpster, Eiya Hashimoto and Ellesse Andrews each getting off to flying starts. Already, the series is nicely poised heading on to Berlin.”

Florian Pavia, Series Director of the UCI Track Champions League, said: “The opening round of a new UCI Track Champions League season is always very exciting because so much work goes on in the build-up to the series. Seeing the crowds cheering the riders on, and the awesome action on the track, and the party atmosphere makes everything worthwhile, and we’re already looking ahead to Round 2 in Berlin now.”

PERFORMANCE HIGHLIGHTS

Ellesse Andrews (New Zealand) went all in to claim the Women’s Keirin win, reaching her maximum heart rate of the night in the very last race, despite the fatigue she’d accumulated. The UCI World Champion hit 201 beats per minute (very close to her potential maximum of 207 bpm) to edge Martha Bayona (Colombia) on the line.

Harrie Lavreysen (Netherlands) consistently beat the 2,000-watt barrier to win both the Men’s Sprint and Keirin: 2,117 watts in the Sprint final and 2,005 watts in the Keirin equivalent, where he launched his sprint whilst in fifth position and thus had to deliver a longer effort to power himself to the front. This exceeds his highest power throughout the entire 2022 UCI Track Champions League season of 2,081 watts.

Matching her potential maximum heart rate of 190bpm, Lily Williams (USA) delivered a stunning effort to get the better of Katie Archibald (Great Britain) in the Women’s Scratch and take her first UCI Track Champions League victory. But the 29 year old couldn’t go higher than 185 bpm in the Elimination, where she finished third.

Mark Stewart (Great Britain) hit the highest heart rate of the Men’s Endurance riders, going over 200 bpm in his bid to join the leaders in the Scratch. That effort sapped his legs though, and Eiya Hashimoto (Japan)’s push at 197 bpm (close to his maximum heart rate of 200 bpm) made the difference on the line.

Sprint / Men / First Round
Sprint / Women / First Round
Scratch / Men
Sprint / Men / Semi Finals
Sprint / Women / Semi Finals
Scratch / Women
Sprint / Men / Final
Sprint / Women / Final
Elimination / Men
Keirin / Women / First Round
Keirin / Men / First Round
Elimination / Women
Keirin / Women / Final
Keirin / Men / Final

Results :