“It was a special moment walking up with the other winners, Olympic and World Champions,” adds the 25-year-old American following his victory in the Men’s Endurance League. On Saturday, after four rounds in Mallorca (Spain), Panevézys (Lithuania) and London (Great Britain), he raised his arms alongside Katie Archibald (winner of the Women’s Endurance League), Emma Hinze (Women’s Sprint League) and Harrie Lavreysen (Men’s Sprint League).
Together, these champions hailing from Europe and the USA have dozens of local and global successes and triumphs, and they each embody compelling stories.
Gavin Hoover
Born in Manhattan Beach (California), USA, on 12 July 1997
After three participations in the UCI Track World Championships (best result: 7th in the Omnium in Berlin 2020), Gavin Hoover became an Olympian last summer at Tokyo 2020. It was a dream in itself for the young Californian, who now lives in Colorado, to make the most of the USA Olympic & Paralympic Training Center Velodrome.
He dares to dream even bigger: “I hope to build on this Champions League success towards Paris 2024, to try and get a medal there.”
Following his successes in the USA and in Pan American events, Hoover was to once again delight his fans, and especially his father: “He was interested in the sport and I grew up 25 minutes away from the Los Angeles velodrome, where the UCI Worlds happened in 2005. My dad got tickets for us to go, and there were events for the kids. Someone asked me: ‘Do you want to try?’ It looked so exciting!” More than 15 years later, the excitement is still very much in the air!
Katie Archibald
Born in Chertsey (Surrey), Great Britain, on 12 March 1994
Although she was born just south of London, Katie Archibald is Scotland’s pride. Raised in Glasgow, she stands out as one the most decorated British cyclists ever, with two gold medals in the 2016 and 2020 Olympic Games, four Elite rainbow jerseys and countless successes in national and international events, including the new UCI Track Champions League! As with many track cyclists, Archibald is a versatile champion. She has a background in swimming, and in internet sales, her first job when she was 18 years old. At the time, she was “training, racing and daydreaming about being paid to ride a bike rather than sell beds”, she told Scottish Cycling.
Also a strong road cyclist, Archibald is set to make her return to the peloton thanks to a contract freshly signed with Ceratizit - WNT Pro Cycling until 2024.
Full gang 🤗https://t.co/IyhBVv3zlw#ucitcl #championofchampions pic.twitter.com/GpWQeFy71x
— Katie Archibald (@_katiearchibald) December 5, 2021
Emma Hinze
Born in Hildesheim (Lower Saxony), Germany, on 17 September 1997
Emma Hinze seems to be up for any challenge. The UCI Track Cycling World Championships? She’s been racking up gold medals since the Junior ranks and has gone on to collect five Elite rainbow jerseys in Berlin 2020 and Roubaix 2021. The UCI Track Champions League and its innovative format? She could rely on her experience in the Cottbus Grand Prix, her home event, where she had already raced individual sprints between riders, the same format as in the new League.
Mostly, Hinze draws on the talents that have made her a superb sprinter and a stalwart of the German selection, a leader on the track and a fun partner all around, who often shares some glimpses behind the scenes on her social media. Also a silver medallist in the last Olympic Games (team sprint), Hinze keeps on looking forward. Not even a hard crash on the London track could stop her this weekend.
Harrie Lavreysen
Born in Luyksgestel (North Brabant), Netherlands, on 14 March 1997
In recent years we have got used to seeing the Dutch colossus Harrie Lavreysen sprinting to victory: since 2018, her has racked up 11 gold medals across the Olympic Games and the UCI Track Cycling World Championships. He also dominated five (out of eight) races in the maiden UCI Track Champions League. But what some don’t realise, is that this mountain of muscles used to storm BMX tracks.
Before he became an absolute champion in the velodromes, Lavreysen was one of the brightest talents of BMX. But he was also a victim of many crashes, until a doctor advised him to stop the discipline due to shoulder injuries.
It was quite a blow, but Lavreysen upped the pace, making the most of the Papendal facilities to switch from BMX to track cycling in 2014. The very next year, he took gold in the team sprint at the Dutch National Track Cycling Championships. Now he rules the sprinters' world.