The sport sees renewal, with young athletes establishing themselves as favorites for Paris; British athletes dominated the medal table with a significant advantage, followed by China and France.

The 2024 Para-Cycling Track World Championships came to a close this Sunday at the Rio Velodrome. The edition saw six world records broken and confirmed a renewal of the sport, with very young athletes dominating their categories and establishing themselves as the new benchmarks in their classes. This is the case for Frenchman Alexandre Léauté in the men’s C2 category and Xiaomei Wang in the women’s C3. New Zealander Devon Briggs, only 20 years old, now holds two new world records in the men’s C3.

On the last day of competition, Chinese athlete Weicong Liang provided a moment of great overcoming and resilience at the Rio Velodrome. He suffered a fall and lost a few laps in the C1 Scratch, but instead of giving up, he decided to return to the track. He flew so much that he achieved what seemed impossible: recovering the lost time and winning not just one, but two world titles (Scratch and Omnium). Before that, he had already won two silver medals in the individual pursuit and time trial, and also finished second in the Flying Start. All three races were won by his compatriot, Zhangyu Li. Spanish cyclist Ricardo Ten Argiles, silver medalist in the Scratch, took the bronze in the Omnium.

The men’s C2 category, on the other hand, has a new champion of everything. Frenchman Alexandre Léauté won the last two races he competed in on Sunday and swept the category. On Wednesday, he had already won gold in the individual pursuit. On Thursday, he crossed the finish line first in the Flying Start (Omnium). On Saturday, besides winning the race, he broke his own world record in the time trial.

On this last day, he ended his participation with a golden key and won the only world title that had escaped him last year, the Scratch, with authority. Léauté took the lead as soon as the race began and, halfway through, lost some positions, and the competition seemed tight, especially against the Englishmen Matthew Robertson and Ryan Taylor. But the Frenchman relied on the help of teammate Florian Chapeau to hold off the competition, regain his position, catch up with the peloton from behind, and interrupt the race.

“We used a great strategy, Florian [Chapeau] and I: one Englishman for each Frenchman, and I decided to start in front because I have a good leg. Today was very good for me, I won many titles, and my goal was achieved. Many races were won. We have a good coach, good training strategy, and that’s great for me. This result is not only mine but the whole team’s. As for the Paralympic Games in my country, I don’t feel pressured. We have many strong points in the team, and I won many races just for the pleasure of cycling, and that’s what I want from the Games too,” he said.

Another athlete to sweep her class was British cyclist Elizabeth Jordan, who, along with pilot Danielle Khan, won the last gold of the Women’s Tandem Sprint on Sunday. They had already won the time trial on Thursday and the individual pursuit on Saturday. Jordan arrived in Rio with a silver medal in the pursuit at the 2022 World Championships, a gold in the team sprint, and a bronze in the time trial in 2023. Now, she is the new world champion in all individual events in the category, just at the debut of a new duo.

“I didn’t expect these results. Dani and I are starting a new partnership, and everything is very exciting at the beginning of a new journey together, but I didn’t imagine we would have so much success already in our debut. It’s been very exciting,” she celebrated.

Great Britain dominated the Tandem in both genders. This category has a significant responsibility in the final medal table, with the British at the top with a wide margin. Lizzie, as she is known, sees the high level of competition in training as a determining factor for the team’s results. Even though she is a big favorite, she plans one step at a time until Paris.

“We love our Tandem athletes and cheer each other on. It’s wonderful to have the best in the world as teammates because, in training, we can encourage each other, compete with each other, and that motivates us to be the best in the world. As for Paris, well, we have to qualify first (laughs). But everything is very exciting, and I hope we have a year of great success together,” she projected.

Great Britain, represented by Lizzie and Danielle, ended the World Championships with 27 medals (12 golds, 13 silvers, and 2 bronzes). Next in line were China with 16 (12 golds, 3 silvers, and 1 bronze), France with 17 (10 golds, 5 silvers, and 2 bronzes), Australia with 12 (4 golds, 3 silvers, and 5 bronzes), and the Netherlands with 6 (2 golds, 1 silver, and 3 bronzes). Brazil finished 11th with two silvers (Sabrina Custódia da Silva in the C2 women’s time trial and Lauro Chaman in the men’s C5 individual pursuit). The International Cycling Union (UCI)

Britain’s Lizzie and Danielle ended the World Championships with 27 medals (12 golds, 13 silvers, and 2 bronzes). Following them were China with 16 (12 golds, 3 silvers, and 1 bronze), France with 17 (10 golds, 5 silvers, and 2 bronzes), Australia with 12 (4 golds, 3 silvers, and 5 bronzes), and the Netherlands with 6 (2 golds, 1 silver, and 3 bronzes). Brazil finished 11th with two silvers (Sabrina Custódia da Silva in the C2 women’s time trial and Lauro Chaman in the men’s C5 individual pursuit). The International Cycling Union (UCI) considers the number of golds, not the total number of medals, as the standard for establishing the ranking.

In addition to the 16 disputes settled this Sunday, the UCI promoted, for the first time, five elimination races. The competition took place in a friendly manner, as an exhibition discipline, and distributed medals, but they are not part of the official standings. Athletes were divided into: C4-C5 women’s classes, C1-C3 women’s classes, C1-C2 men’s classes, C3-C4 men’s classes, and C5 men’s class. In the latter, Chaman finished second.

Day 5 (24/03) competitions:

Mixed C1-C5 classes* – Team Sprint (750 m)

*MC1-5 – men’s classes; WC1-5 – women’s classes

Medalists:

Gold – China: Zhangyu Li (MC1), Guoqing Wu (MC4), and Shanzhang Lai (MC5)

Silver – Great Britain: Kadeena Cox (WC4), Jaco Van Gass (MC3), and Jody Cundy (MC4)

Bronze – Australia: Gordon Allan (MC2), Michael Shippley (MC4), and Korey Boddington (MC4)

Brazil: 16th – Sabrina Custódia da Silva (WC2), Ricardo Alafim de Freitas (MC5), and Elielson Rodrigues (MC4)

C5 Women’s Class – Scratch Race (10 km)

Medalists: Marie Patouillet (FRA), Claudia Cretti (ITA), and Nicole Murray (NZL)

C1-C2 Women’s Class – Scratch Race (10 km)

Medalists: Amanda Reid (AUS), Flurina Rigling (SUI), and Cristelle Ribault (FRA)

Brazilian: Sabrina Custódia da Silva (7th)

C2 Men’s Class – Scratch Race (15 km)

Medalists: Alexandre Léauté (FRA), Shota Kawamoto (JPN), and Ewoud Vromant (BEL)

Brazilian: Victor Luise de Oliveira Herling (13th)

C1 Women’s Class – Omnium

Medalists: Wangwei Qian (CHN) and Katie Toft (GBR)

C2 Women’s Class – Omnium

Medalists: Flurina Rigling (SUI), Daphne Schraeger (GBR), and Daniela Carolina Munevar Florez (COL)

Brazilians: Sabrina Custódia da Silva (4th) and Victoria Maria de Camargo e Barbosa (7th)

C5 Women’s Class – Omnium

Medalists: Marie Patouillet (FRA), Nicole Murray (NZL), and Claudia Cretti (ITA)

Brazilians: Fabiana Ventura de Assis (10th) and Telma Aparecida Alves Bueno (12th)

Women’s Tandem – Sprint

Medalists: Great Britain (Elizabeth Jordan/Dannielle Khan), Great Britain (Sophie Unwin/Jenny Holl), and Australia (Jessica Gallagher/Caitlin Ward)

Brazilian: Bianca Canovas Garcia/Nicolle Wendy Borges (10th)

Men’s Tandem – Sprint

Medalists: Great Britain (Neil Fachie/Matthew Rotherham), France (Raphaël Beaugillet/Quentin Caleyron), and Great Britain (James Ball/Steffan Lloyd)

Brazilians: Luciano da Rosa/Daniel Henrique Gruer de Brito (16th) and Bruno Bonfim dos Anjos/José Eriberto Medeiros Rodrigues Filho (19th)

C1 Men’s Class – Scratch Race (15 km)

Medalists: Weicong Liang (CHN), Ricardo Ten Argiles (ESP), and Pierre Senska (GER)

C3 Men’s Class – Scratch Race (15 km)

Medalists: Jaco Van Gass (GBR), Alexandre Hayward (CAN), and Masaki Fujita (JPN)

Brazilian: Eduardo Carvalho Hipólito de Araújo (13th)

C5 Men’s Class – Scratch Race (15 km)

Medalists: Dorian Foulon (FRA), Franz-Josef Lässer (AUT), and Alistair Donohoe (AUS)

Brazilian: Lauro Chaman (6th)

C1 Men’s Class – Omnium

Medalists: Weicong Liang (CHN), Zhangyu Li (CHN), and Ricardo Ten Argiles (ESP)

Brazilian: Carlos Alberto Gomes Soares (8th)

C2 Men’s Class – Omnium

Medalists: Alexandre Léauté (FRA), Shota Kawamoto (JPN), and Matthew Robertson (GBR)

Brazilian: Victor Luise de Oliveira Herling (10th)

C3 Men’s Class – Omnium

Medalists: Jaco Van Gass (GBR), Devon Briggs (NZL), and Finlay Graham (GBR)

Brazilian: Eduardo Carvalho Hipólito de Araújo (13th)

C5 Men’s Class – Omnium

Medalists: Dorian Foulon (FRA), Franz-Josef Lässer (AUT), and Blaine Hunt (GBR)

Brazilians: Lauro Chaman (5th) and Pablo Henrick Voigt Santos (17th)