The 2026 UCI Track World Cup enters its decisive phase this month. After the opening action in Perth, Australia, early March, the series heads to Asia for the final two rounds, to be held in quick succession: first in Hong Kong, China (17-19 April), then in Nilai, Malaysia (24-26 April).
The final standings of the UCI Track World Cup will not only serve to crown the overall winners, but also shape the hierarchy as nations battle for qualifying quotas for the 2026 Tissot UCI Track World Championships (Shanghai, China in October) and the 2028 Olympic Games (Los Angeles, USA).
Three days of intense competition
Australian stars ruled the first round, on home soil, but their rivals gear up to bring battle and shake the standings already this weekend, with 14 events (seven for women and seven for men) to be contested over three days of intense competition in the Hong Kong Velodrome, previously home to the 2017 UCI Track World Championships.
The first finals, on Friday, will bring fireworks with the elimination race, team pursuit, and team sprint for both Men and Women. On Saturday, titles will be decided in the Women Madison, Women individual sprint, Men keirin and Men omnium. The closing session, on Sunday, will be no less action-packed: Men Madison, Men individual sprint, the Women’s keirin and Women omnium.
Each day, the action is divided into two sessions, with qualifying rounds in the morning and finals in the evening. In between, rising talents will get to compete in this prestigious setting during youth events organised on Friday (scratch), Saturday (points race) and Sunday (elimination), bringing further excitement for the fans in the velodrome. The action will also be available around the world through the expertise and international network of Warner Bros. Discovery Sports.
Lavreysen to lead the Dutch charge
Among the Australian talents who took victory in Perth, Maeve Plouffe, Noah Blannin, Liam Walsh and Alessia McCaig are gearing up for further success this weekend. They’ll need to be at their best against a field of competitors who are determined to unseat them.
Dutch power enters the competition after missing the first round. Their star, Harrie Lavreysen, is set to take to the velodrome on three occasions: the team sprint alongside Roy van den Berg and Tijmen van Loon on Friday; the keirin on Saturday; and the individual sprint on Sunday. With his power, skills and an impressive list of groundbreaking achievements, Lavreysen is a natural favourite. However, he will face Matthew Richardson, as the two rivals meet again just a couple of months after the British rider got the better of the Dutch icon in both the sprint and the keirin at the UEC European Track Championships
The Netherlands’ Hetty van de Wouw, who claimed three gold medals at last year’s Tissot UCI Track World Championships in Santiago de Chile (the kilometre time trial, individual sprint and team sprint), also lines up for the sprint, keirin and team sprint. She will notably race alongside Steffie van der Peet and Kimberly Kalee, who were both crowned with her in the team sprint, and face off against Japan’s Mina Sato, winner of the keirin at the last two editions of the UCI Track World Championships.
Cobble lovers and rising stars
Italy’s Chiara Consonni, Martina Alzini and Vittoria Guazzini shift from the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix Femmes Hauts-de-France to the track in Hong Kong, China, reuniting with their teammate Martina Fidanza as they aim to claim glory in the team pursuit. Guazzini and Consonni will notably pair up for the Madison, a race they ruled at the 2024 Olympic Games (Paris, France).
The list of reigning UCI Track World Champions also includes Spain’s Albert Torres Barceló (omnium), Germany’s Moritz Augenstein (scratch), Mexico’s Yareli Acevedo Mendoza (points race). Madelaine Leech , a winner of the women’s Madison with Katie Archibald at the 2025 UCI World Championships, now partners with Erin Boothman, who won the same event at the 2025 UCI Junior Track World Championships
The star-studded cast also features the likes of New Zealand’s Ellesse Andrews, winner of the sprint and keirin at the 2024 Olympic Games, and Britain’s Emma Finucane, who is no stranger to rainbow and Olympic glory. They now aim to carry their nations in the UCI Track World Cup.