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Australia set to launch at UCI Track Nations Cup season opener in Jakarta
Feb 22, 2023
The Australian Cycling Team begins its road to the Paris 2024 boards this week at Indonesia’s Jakarta International Velodrome for the first Tissot UCI Track Nations Cup round of 2023.
14 Australians will race in Jakarta from February 23-26 in the same events as those at the Olympic Games in 2024: keirin, individual sprint, team sprint, Madison, omnium and team pursuit.
Among the Australian team in Jakarta is Matthew Richardson, who is looking to jump straight back to where he left off at the end of 2022 when he won the UCI Track Champions League sprint title.
“Pretty keen to rip into the season starting here at Jakarta Nations Cup,” Richardson said.
“My body is feeling good for this early in the season and I think people will definitely be more aware of me in races after the Champions League season I had.
"It (Jakarta) looks like a super nice track.
“I’ve heard it’s smooth and reasonably fast, so keen to get out there and ride it myself.”
Richardson is joined by fellow team sprint world champions Thomas Cornish and Leigh Hoffman as the three male sprinters in Jakarta.
It’s the first opportunity to race in the rainbow stripes for the trio, who became Australia’s first men’s team sprint world champions in a decade last October in France alongside Matthew Glaetzer.
“We can’t wait to get out there in rainbows,” Richardson said.
Commonwealth Games gold medallist Kristina Clonan rounds out the sprint side of the Australian Cycling Team in Jakarta.
Kristina Clonan at the 2022 UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines. Picture: Guy Swarbrick
10 endurance athletes join the sprinters in Jakarta, with a star-studded women’s quintet joined by a young men’s line-up.
UCI Women’s WorldTour riders Georgia Baker, Alexandra Manly, Amber Pate (all Team Jayco AlUla) and Maeve Plouffe (Team DSM) will be back in the team pursuit line with domestically based Sophie Edwards (ARA Skip Capital).
All five women have enjoyed a promising start to the year racing with their trade teams, with Manly winning a stage of the Santos Tour Down Under, Pate winning the elite women’s criterium national championship at the 2023 Federation University Road Nationals in Ballarat, and Baker and Plouffe coming in hot off the back of racing the UAE Tour.
The 22-year-old Commonwealth Games gold medallist said she is looking forward to returning to racing on the boards.
“Getting the Warrny win was a nice reward after a tough summer block with a broken wrist and plenty of hours on the ergo! But it’s so early in the season, so I’m excited to really test the legs on the track then in Europe on the road from late April,” Edwards said.
“It’s definitely been a different track prep to what I’m used to, but I’m feeling really good from it.
“I think lots of volume plus plenty of time out in the Aussie sun has helped my body prepare for the conditions here in Jakarta.
“I’m excited because the track feels surprisingly familiar and fast – a few of us think it’s pretty similar in shape and style to Brisbane (Anna Meares Velodrome) so we’re looking forward to hopefully setting some quick times this week!”
The men’s endurance squad includes Commonwealth Games bronze medallists Conor Leahy, James Moriarty and Graeme Frislie, and fresh faces Oliver Bleddyn and Blake Agnoletto.
Bleddyn debuted for Australia at the elite level in the victorious men’s team pursuit squad at last year’s Oceania Track Championships, while Jakarta will be Agnoletto’s debut.
Indonesia’s wet season has come to play for the racing this week, with storms and high humidity potentially the perfect recipe for fast boards and fast times at Jakarta International Velodrome.
Team pursuit qualifying gets the 2023 Tissot Track Nations Cup season underway at 10pm AEDT tomorrow.
Australian Cycling Team in Jakarta:
- Georgia Baker
- Alexandra Manly
- Sophie Edwards
- Maeve Plouffe
- Amber Pate
- Kristina Clonan
- Matthew Richardson
- Thomas Cornish
- Leigh Hoffman
- Conor Leahy
- Graeme Frislie
- James Moriarty
- Oliver Bleddyn
- Blake Agnoletto
What is the UCI Track Nations Cup?
The 2023 Tissot UCI Track Nations Cup will play a decisive role in the qualification of nations for the 2023 UCI Track World Championships (August 3-9), which will take place as part of the UCI Cycling World Championships, the first edition of which will be held in Glasgow and across Scotland (Great Britain) from August 3-13.
The three rounds of the series will also count towards the UCI Track Olympic Ranking, allowing nations to qualify for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
Characteristics of Jakarta International Velodrome:
- Length: 250 metres
- Width: 7.2 metres
- Surface: Untreated Siberian Spruce
- Bend: Maximum 42 degrees
- Straight: Maximum 17 degrees
How to watch:
UCI is yet to confirm live stream details but keep your eye on the UCI YouTube channel or Tissot Track TV.