ARA Australian Cycling Team junior squad selected for 2024 UCI Road World Championships

Six junior athletes have been selected to represent the ARA Australian Cycling Team at the 2024 UCI Road World Championships in Zurich, Switzerland.

The squad, announced by the AusCycling National Selection Panel today, will race for rainbow jerseys and world championship medals this September.

All six members of the team were part of the ARA Australian Cycling Team European road development opportunity between April and June.

Junior women’s road race and time trial national champion Lauren Bates has been selected after a dominant summer of cycling campaign.

The Canberran added the junior women’s Oceania road race crown to her tally in April with another strong, solo performance.

She is joined by Victorian Emily Dixon, who finished on the podium of both the road race and time trial at RoadNats before impressing in France at Tour du Gévaudan Occitanie by finishing 11th in the general classification.

Junior men’s time trial national champion Wil Holmes will travel to Zurich as the only returning member of the junior team from the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships in Glasgow, Scotland.

The South Australian finished 17th in the road race and 20th in the time trial in Glasgow.

In January, the 18-year-old signed a long-term deal with Team Jayco AlUla that will see him step into the UCI WorldTour in 2026.

In Europe, Holmes has three top-10 GC finishes this season, a fifth-place finish at Liège-Bastogne-Liège Juniors and a sixth-place finish at Giro di Primavera.

Alex Eaves’ consistency in 2024 has seen him rewarded with a forthcoming world championships debut, two years after his older brother Will did so in Wollongong.

2023 junior men’s Oceania road race champion Will Heath will also tick off a world championships debut.

Max Goold completes the junior road squad as the youngest member of the ARA Australian Cycling Team for Zurich 2024.

The Victorian was crowned the junior men’s Oceania road race champion in April and finished third in the road race at RoadNats.

The junior individual time trial world championships will be held on September 23 for the men and September 24 for the women.

The junior road race world championships will be raced on September 26 for both the men and women.

ARA Australian Cycling Team for the 2024 UCI Junior Road World Championships

Women

• Lauren Bates (Canberra CC)
• Emily Dixon (Mornington CC)

Men

• Alex Eaves (City of Burnie CC)
• Max Goold (Blackburn CC)
• Will Heath (Balmoral CC)
• Wil Holmes (Norwood CC)

Feature picture: ZW Photography/SWpix.com