Australians will be able to cheer for both of their national champions when the world titles for cycling esports are decided next month.
Matilda 'Tilly' Field (You Yangs Mountain Bike) and Josh Harris (Launceston City Cycling Club) have qualified for the final of the UCI Cycling Esports World Championships in Abu Dhabi.
It’ll be the second time the World Championships have been contested with an in-person final, and the first time the ARA Australian Cycling Team will be represented in both the men’s and women’s events.
Ten riders for the Australian team raced the semi-finals earlier this month remotely on MyWhoosh, vying to be one of the top 20 men and women who would progress to the live final.
Harris finished eighth in 2024. (Photo: MyWhoosh)
Tasmania’s Josh Harris placed ninth in the men’s event to book his ticket for the second consecutive year.
“Making the final again has been the motivation behind all of my training in the last six months,” Harris said. “The level only keeps increasing, so to put myself in the top 10 in the semi-finals again was a little bit of a surprise.”
In the women’s semi-final, Field had to dig deep to secure the last remaining spot. The Victorian entered the last points race well down the leaderboard, needing to score strongly across each of the eight sprints.
“With nothing left to lose, and one chance left—I locked in,” Field said. “Lap after lap I was scoring points, jumping up positions, but still not convinced it would be enough.
“When I crossed that final sprint and Carlee [Taylor], our DS, said ‘Tilly you did it – you’re 20th,’ I couldn’t believe it. I just broke down in joy and disbelief.”
Tilly Field said making the final was her 'only goal' this year. (Photo: supplied)
Field and Harris will travel to the United Arab Emirates to contest the live final on November 15. For both Australians, reaching this pinnacle event fulfils a season-long objective.
“Making top 20 in the Cycling Esports World Championship semi-finals has been my only goal for the past year,” said Field, who won the national title back in April while racing remotely from Spain.
“To be able to bring Australia to the world stage of esports, to make all the early morning efforts worth it, and finally meet my worldwide teammates and rivals face-to-face – that’s why this means so much to me.”
“In a sport where we don't get to spend time with our competitors, this trip means everything,” said Harris, who finished eighth at last year’s World Championships. “All the hard work has been totally worth it, and I'm looking forward to representing Australia with Tilly over there.”