THE UCI TRACK CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: THE KEY RIDERS AND PERSONALITIES

Maximilian Levy (Germany), three-time Olympic medallist
"With the UCI Track Champions League it's like this: I have announced the end of my career and that's how it will stay. Regardless of that, I will ride my last six-day race in Berlin. But as often happens in life, when you try to break up with a relationship, it comes back and gives you a big hug. The UCI asked me if I would like to take part in the new Track Champions League to also reward the results of the Olympic Games. I was happy to accept this offer and thus extend my personal farewell tour a bit.

“As there will probably be few six-day races for sprinters, this was a welcome opportunity to return to the track and say 'Ciao'. I am looking forward to racing on the different tracks. It's a good thing that track cycling is getting a higher profile at the World Federation as well. From a purely sporting point of view, I don't have huge expectations anymore, because I've already dedicated myself a bit to triathlon, I'm running and I've already lost five kilos. Nevertheless, I think that one or two successes in a race are still possible. Above all, I want to enjoy it and find a good end to my career at the same time."

Ed Clancy (Great Britain), three-time Olympic gold medallist
“I'm super excited that someone's going to try and get hold of track cycling and make it really easy to digest for the fans. I think this is a great opportunity to bring something entertaining, in the world of track cycling back to the fans both from an in house spectator point of view.

“I love racing the track. And I'm into all forms of cycling here, mountain bike, road track, all sorts even like the trials, bikes and things like that. But for me, the best racing in cycling is on the track. And for me, it's always been a bit of a disappointment that I feel like I ride the track just to kind of qualify for events. This is a rare thing. It's a rare treat when there's a track event or events that are being promoted, that are entertaining for the riders, and entertaining for the fans. So I'm looking forward to that. And maybe I'm biased, but I do believe in track cycling. And I think that there's great potential, it's put on an amazing show.

“I think that having this series over five rounds is new and that's never been done before, particularly in the kind of single day format. So the way you approach a one-off event it's quite different to how both physically and tactically how you'd approach a series of events. From a rider's point of view, it'll be really interesting to see how people manage fatigue, travel and maintaining fitness through that five or six week period.

Seb Mora (Spain), two-time Olympian
“I think that being such a fast format and so enjoyable for the spectators, the fans will be very expectant. I hope the sprinters can show off all their talents and can engage the fans and give a new format to track cycling. The innovation will increase the visibility of track cycling. With Discovery and Eurosport, the event will have a huge visibility and in the end I think we should innovate a bit. We need to know always what is track cycling, and this event is an ambition and a new way to see how we know the track.

“It’s a new format, a new situation and it benefits cyclists who are faster. I am a cyclist who likes harder races and more resistant, but we will try to be at the highest possible level. 

"It is a new format and produced by Discovery Sports Events and the UCI that is a way of trying to give top visibility to this world that we love so much. What most differentiates this from other events is the program, which will be very compressed and encourage the viewer to be visually engaged on television, this is the main difference compared to other races and formats that are longer and in all of them you have more time to recovery. We will have two hours on television ‘full attack’.

“Equal prices for men and women in this event, a step ahead for equality. It is a very good point, we also see it in the Movistar team with a male and female team, we enjoy the same conditions. The issue of integration is very important and we see that it is catching up and we are on the right way.”

Harrie Lavreysen (Netherlands), double Tokyo 2020 gold medallist
“What I really like about the format is that we race six weeks in a row, and that you can really try something, build something up. And I hope we can engage with the fans in I hope they can watch us every week. So I like that it's in a short period of time. It will be really short races, so there will be a lot of tension. You can’t make any mistake because they are out and they will they need to wait for the next week, but it's totally different than what we normally race.

“I’ve seen one video with all the lights for an event, and it looks really cool. It looks really nice. It gives me a little bit feeling of the six days. But now racing is way harder with the big international set of riders. So I think this could be really cool in a velodrome. It's always good to see innovation in sport. We have to see how it will work out. And, of course, they can change something if it wouldn't work out. I'm happy that I can race the series. I hope, this is the beginning of a new track cycling era - and of course, it's nice to be to be there at the beginning.

“Why am I on board with the UCI Track Champions League? I think it's a big innovation in track cycling. And I support innovation, because track cycling is is really cool. And I think they only can make it better. What's different is about the Champions League is that is it short, it's only one evening normally track cycling is a few days, long days of racing. And now they put everything into going quickly to final having a quick winner. And I think that would be way more interesting for the crowds but also for the riders because we can’t make a mistake and we really need to focus on winning every race.”

Emma Hinze (Germany), Tokyo 2020 silver medallist
“Track cycling means a lot to me because I train on the track nearly every day and I try to get better every day. It’s like an obsession. It’s been exciting to have many competitions in 2021 after not having any races for one year. It was really difficult not to race because I love racing and I am the competition-type of person but it was the same for all of the other athletes so I just accepted it and tried to get better in training.

“On the track I love the speed and you need to be good tactically. I love that is really short, and you need to be really good in a short space of time. The Track Champions League is new and I am really looking forward to this one. We are going to race every weekend so it will be on the TV more often, it’s going to be the same rivals every weekend, you will have to be good over six weeks. I also like the equality between men and women – the same number of riders, the same prize money. The sprint and keirin are my favourite disciplines, I like both of them but I think sprint is a little more interesting to watch because your rivals change every heat so you need a new tactic every time.”

Simona Krupeckaite (Lithuania), professional track cyclist and five-time Olympian
“In my opinion, the concentration of all the champions in one place makes the Track Champions League so amazing. The best of the best with the biggest achievements will take part in the event. And that is what is amazing about this series. There will be an opportunity to observe the ‘stars’ competing and I am also very curious to see how everything will play out. And as there will be as many as five races almost in a row, it will definitely be intriguing. I think there will also be rotation of the racers.

From an observer’s perspective, this type of race is created as a show, an ‘exhibit’ competition, and I think it definitely adds beauty and fascination, and it is probably easier to follow and observe the race, and it adds more excitement. I think it should be a very beautiful event. As the Champions League is the gathering for all the track elite racers, it is a new wonderful event for both spectators and the competitors alike, it’s a great chance and motivation to take part in the race, because it is not only a beautiful event, not only the place where all the champions come together but also it is a chance to try yourself out, and an amazing opportunity for every racer. I wish patience and good planning to the organisers of the event. I am sure they are very experienced and will make the event as attractive as possible both for the viewers as well as for the racers.”

Sir Chris Hoy (Great Britain), UCI Track Champions League, Discovery expert and six-time Olympic gold medallist
“By making it more accessible, they are going to get to see all the detail, they’re going to get to see things like the power outputs, heart rates, the data behind the performance. They’re going to get to see the best riders in the world. I think for the fans, it’s super exciting, it’s going to be nice and simple, it’s going to be quick, it’s going to be condensed into a two-hour package. It’s what the fans really want, and I think it’s what the riders want too.

“I think the riders are going to be very mindful of the overall points competition. It’s not just about a one-off race and one chance to grab a medal. Every position counts, so there’s going to be battles from first and second down to 10th, 11th and 12th in all the races, and that’s great for the fans because they get to see real aggressive racing.”

Watch the UCI Track Champions League from Mallorca, Spain LIVE from 18:45 on Saturday 6 November on discovery+ (selected markets), Eurosport and GCN+.