Last month, 354 cyclists from 51 nations competed in the 2022 Tissot UCI Track World Championships in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (France), where rainbow jerseys were awarded in 22 events. The second edition of the UCI Track Champions League now attracts the cream of the crop for intense competitions that will crown only four winners: the best male and female riders in two leagues, sprint and endurance.
The star-studded 72-rider field from 25 nations is thus divided in four groups of 18 athletes who qualified for the series through their results in the recent UCI Tissot Track World Championships, other results from the 2022 season, as well as last year’s UCI Worlds and UCI Track Champions League. Over the coming weekends, they will participate in five high-intensity rounds to crown the greatest champions in London (Great Britain) on December 3. Their first battles commence in Mallorca (Spain) on November 12.
Lavreysen: "quickfire, fun and easy to follow"
The Palma Arena already set the tone for the inaugural UCI Track Champions League last year. The Spanish fans were the first to experience the novel format, designed with track icons Kristina Vogel and Chris Hoy, that sees the stars give their absolute best in a quick-fire racing programme.
On 12 November, competitions will start at 6:45pm CET in the 6,000-seat velodrome. Over the following three hours, the sprinters will compete in the keirin and the individual sprint, while the endurance riders will face a short Scratch race and the elimination race. By the end of the evening, the series will have determined the first four leaders of the 2022-2023 edition. The battle will continue every weekend until the finale in London.
Action comes thick and fast with riders having only short recovery times between races. There are also exciting twists: for example, in the individual sprint, the heats are raced with three riders (instead of two) and the winners directly go through (instead of a "best of three" format).
"The series has brought track cycling to a whole new audience and I’m a big fan of the way the racing format is organised – it’s quickfire, fun and easy to follow," rejoices Harrie Lavreysen, the inaugural winner of the Men Sprint League.
Among the best female sprinters in recent years, Pauline Grabosch (four-time UCI World Champion) is eager to join the action this year: “I’ve heard the competition is super hard but also hugely enjoyable at the same time, and there’s a real camaraderie between the riders who compete in it. Being a German rider, I’m particularly looking forward to the Berlin round on Saturday 19 November, but I’m sure all five rounds will be really fun, and I can’t wait to get going.”
Innovative coverage for a novel format
The collaboration with Warner Bros. Discovery Sports ensures high-end coverage of the event. The format enjoyed an immense success in 2021 with 149 million viewers across Warner Bros. Discovery’s network (comprising discovery+, Eurosport and GCN+) alone, plus 26 additional broadcast partners ensuring it was screened in 206 countries across the globe.
The UCI Track Champions League will now benefit from extended coverage as it takes on the metaverse to connect with new audiences and bring them all the action enhanced with live data.
"By breaking new ground in metaverse experiences around live sports events we will empower fans to engage with sport in new and exciting ways", said François Ribeiro, Head of Discovery Sports Events. "We see the preview during the UCI Track Champions League as an outstanding opportunity to open new avenues for storytelling and fan engagement, providing key learnings as we look to extend our partnership to other assets of Discovery Sports Events’ portfolio."