After the first round last week in Maniago, Italy, the world’s most talented para-cyclists will take to the roads of Yverdon-les-Bains, Switzerland, for the second stopover of the UCI Para-cycling Road World Cup.
From June 14 to16, the roads along the shores of Lake Neuchâtel will host close to 350 athletes from 37 countries.
Courses in the Swiss town will vary, challenging competitors: the time trial will be flat, while a 14.57 loop of the road race will be rolling, with two climbs - one of which is 4km long.
One of the Swiss athletes to watch is multi-talented Sandra Graf, who will strive to impress in competitions at home in the H4 Class. At the London 2012 Paralympic Games, Graf was the gold medalist in the H3 time trial, in addition to earning a bronze medal in the Wheelchair Marathon (T54), a para-athletic discipline. Last weekend in Italy, Graf won the time trial, and scored a silver medal in the road race in her class.
Team Italy started the season off with a bang - and 18 medals in individual events - last week, taking home 10 gold, 4 silver and 4 bronze over three days in Maniago; that impressive total doesn’t even include the gold medal won in the Hand Cycling Relay! Carlo Calcagni (T2) lead La Squadra Azzura with a dominating weekend with wins in both the time trial and road races.
Like Calcagni, six other para-cyclists were also unbeaten in the two races in Italy, namely: Poland’s Anna Harkowska (C5), Team USA.’s Shawn Morelli (C4), South Africa’s Justine Asher (H2), Slovakia’s Jozek Metelka (C4), Finland’s Teppo Polvi (H1) and Team France’s Quentin Aubague (T1).
Current reigning C1 Class time trial World Champin, Germany’s Michael Teuber kicked off his cycling season in style with a win in the time trial and a bronze medal in the road race. Teuber can also count on teammate Erich Winkler - a two-time silver medalist in Maniago – to help him bring home the hardware for Germany in their category.
Finally, a hotly disputed battle is on the horizon in the men’s tandem races, with three duos currently tied in World Cup rankings. Last weekend’s time trial winners, Team Netherland’s Vincent Ter Schure and Timo Fransen (pilot), will face Britain’s Stephen Bate and Adam Duggleby (pilot), as well as Poland’s Marcin Polak and pilot Michal Ladosz, who won silver and bronze medals, respectively.
The time trials will take place on Sunday, followed by the road races on Monday and Tuesday.