We asked the pro athletes at the UCI Track Champions League some questions
The following questions were answered by the Sprint champion Harrie Lavreysen (24 years old, NED, IG: @harrielavreysen):
Harrie Lavreysen in his leader`s jersey. (source: instagram @harrielavreysen)
- What advice would you give someone who wants to start track cycling?
I think if you want to learn to ride track, first you need to get comfortable with the basics of cycling. It is better to start it on the road. When you are good enough, search for your local velodrome, rent a bike and just ride out! It is so much fun!
- What was your favourite moment so far at the UCI Track Champions League?
We started off in Mallorca and it was good, however my best moment was when I won both the sprint and keirin in Lithuania!
- How do you find the ZBike?
It is so cool! You have the buttons on the handlebar so I can adjust the Watts at which I want to ride. At the moment I am not on the track so I can focus on doing my specific workout routine and also connect to the simulators like BKOOL.
The next questions were answered by Rayan Helal (22 years old, FRA, IG: @rayan_helal):
Rayan Helal in action (source:swordstoday.ie)
- Do you train indoors or outdoors?
I would like to train outdoors but since I live in Paris this does not usually work. It also rains a lot in Paris, these days I have to do my training indoors. It is also more effective.
- How do you feel about the atmosphere at the UCI TCL?
It is an amazing race and fenomenal atmosphere. There are different rules to make the races shorter and more interesting to the spectators. I believe that this is great because it brings track cycling closer to the audience. It also makes it more enjoyable for everyone.
We also asked Tom Derache (22 years old, FRA, IG: @tom.derache):
Tom Derache on the track (source: instagram @tom.derache)
- What is your usual warm up for a track race?
I usually do my warm up on a bike like ZBike. I do twenty minutes easily to get my legs going. Then I do some activation efforts to get the blood flowing. It is great here, because all these ZBikes are connected to BKOOL so warming up is more fun.
- What was your favourite moment so far at the UCI Track Champions League?
For me the opening ceremony in Mallorca was such a good moment! It was amazing to see the riders and the spectators. I really believe that UCI TCL brings the sport as a whole closer to the people.
