WA Five Selected in Junior World Championship Longteam

Five WA track cycling athletes have been named in Australia’s longteam for the 2017 UCI Junior Track World Championships in China.

Cycling Australia this week released its squad, with five local athletes included in the 21-strong team, which includes sprinters Kye Bonser and Matt Richardson, men’s endurance cyclists Tyler Lindorff and Conor Leahy and women’s endurance cyclist Jade Haines.

The final squad will be confirmed on June 21, with the 2017 titles set be hosted in China from 23-27 August.

WAIS head coach Clay Worthington said selection had been reward for effort for the athletes.

“There’s not one of these athletes who’ve just rolled off the couch six weeks ago and now they’re in the junior worlds squad, they’re working their butts off,” he said.

Worthington believes the Junior Championships will provide an important learning curve for the athletes as they continue their development in the sport.

“The fact that these athletes have made the team and in some cases for the second time (Jade Haines) – is a really important part of the journey and they’re going to have a great experience we hope; both personally and sporting wise.”

With the Midvale SpeedDome currently undergoing track redevelopments to enhance the training environment, Worthington said the group would get creative to ensure they’re ready to go next August.

“Well, we’ve had no shortage of ideas and conversations and various things going on. It’s a little bit easier for the endurance guys, they very typically go into their road season and pursue the road selection events, to try and build their aerobic strength.

“For the sprint guys it’s a bit harder,” he said. “We’ve set up a partnership with ECU and we’re using their SRM ergos to cadence prescribed work and try to replicate track sessions from there but that’s obviously a very 2D scenario and takes out the 3D.”

“We’re looking at a track camp before the worlds selection camp so that we’ve got that opportunity to upskill them back up to what they normally would be.”

Despite the modified preparation, Worthington is confident that his charges will adapt and find solutions, drawing off the resilience of the broader training group.

“At the end of the day, each athlete does with their tools what they’re going to do.”

“It’s that belief, it’s that positivity and it’s that culture that we draw on,” Worthington said.

You can read more about the WAIS Cycling program philosophy here.

Photo: Tim Blake