The second round of the 2022 UCI Track Champions League saw the riders travel from sunny Mallorca to a snow-covered Berlin, where the unique UFO-esque Velodrom made its first-ever appearance in the series.
It was a night of crashes, comebacks and renewed rivalries in front of an enthusiastic crowd. Here are three moments that stick strongest in our memories:
Matthew Richardson catches Harrie Lavreysen off guard
After their first UCI Track Champions League meeting a week before, defending Men’s Sprint winner Harrie Lavreysen and Matthew Richardson cemented their burgeoning rivalry on the boards of the Berlin Velodrom. And just like Round 1, the pair were almost inseparable, with one victory apiece – albeit with Stefan Bötticher breathing down their necks and hoping for a home advantage.
With an inevitability that would become well established throughout the series, both Lavreysen and Richardson progressed to the Men’s Sprint final, and the crowd was treated to a thriller of a race.
Lavreysen rolled off the start and into the lead position as Richardson tucked in behind, and a lap of cat and mouse followed as Lavreysen stole glances at his rival, the pace steadily picking up until the bell rang for the last lap. Then Richardson made the move that would define the race, ducking under the 11-time world champion while Lavreysen was looking over his opposite shoulder.
With Richardson going all in, Lavreysen was forced up the track at the apex of the curve. All was not lost yet as the Dutchman tried to use the steeper pitch to his advantage, but the momentum he gained didn’t give him enough time to close the gap before the line, and Richardson roared to a memorable win.
Katie Archibald comes back fighting
Reigning Women’s Endurance champion Katie Archibald was expected to pick up where she left off during the opening round in Mallorca, but after taking a hard-fought win in the Scratch, the record-breaking Brit suffered a shock early exit in the Elimination. That put her on the back foot heading to Berlin, and she had a point to prove.
The Women’s Endurance competition that night opened with the Scratch race and it was clear early on that the Scot was ready to go all in, responding to a move by German rider Lea Lin Teutenberg in the opening laps. Blue jersey holder Jennifer Valente was forced to follow Archibald, and after 14 laps of hard chasing, the pair caught the back of the pack to ‘take a lap’. Now it was just a matter of who crossed the line first, and Valente seemed content to settle for second as Archibald moved up to take her first win of the night.
Then onto the Elimination, which was a more than usually chaotic event. One thing was certain though, and that was Archibald’s domination. She stayed out of the way at the front of the race until the 18-strong field was reduced to the final five, when the riders started playing games with each other. Then, finally, Archibald surged clear of her remaining rival to bring down the curtain on a fantastic night.
Dylan Bibic goes from zero to hero
Crashes are part and parcel of track racing and the Men’s Scratch race in 2022 was disrupted by a particularly heavy one leaving many riders battered and bruised, including Dylan Bibic. The young Canadian looked decidedly worse for wear as he came down off the track, but there was still the Elimination to race before anyone could lick their wounds and recover.
As that race got underway, many of the early exits included riders who had crashed earlier in the evening, but all the while, Bibic stayed at the front of the pack. One by one, riders were called out of the race until only Bibic and William Perrett were left to fight for victory.
Bibic glued himself to Perrett’s wheel going into the final lap before drifting up the track ready to dive back down and begin his sprint. The steep banking and the sweep of the curve gave him the added momentum he needed to fly past the Brit and seal a brilliant bounce-back victory, confirming his credentials as an up-and-coming superstar of track cycling at just 19 years old.
Tickets for Round 2 of the 2023 UCI Track Champions League in Berlin will be available soon and fans can register their interest by clicking here.
