On Monday 17th May, seventeen aspiring female cyclists attended the ŠKODA DSI Cycling Academy recruitment day at Lee Valley in London to be in with the chance of being selected for the ŠKODA Cycling Academy.
The aim of the ŠKODA DSI Cycling Academy is to champion the challengers in female cycling, by supporting young, aspiring riders in their mission to make it pro. To do this, the Academy offers promising female cyclists a pathway to the elite level as well as first-hand experience of life as a professional rider.
Throughout the Testing Day, three separate groups of cyclists completed a series of grueling tests across a 3 hour period, all guided and watched by Britain’s most decorated female Paralympian, Dame Sarah Storey.
Dame Sarah Storey and her fellow Storey Racing teammates supported and instructed the riders through their tests, keeping a watchful eye on all their performances.
The standard showcased throughout the day was extremely high with every single rider committing 100%. This made the selection process very difficult. In the end Dame Sarah Storey and her team selected 4 new riders to join the ŠKODA DSI Cycling Academy: Olivia French, Gwyneth Parry, Lucy Ellmore and Maddi Aldam-Gates.
Congratulations to the new recruits and to everyone who attended on the day!
The tests:
All the cyclists completed 3 tests on the Watt Bike inside the Velodrome and 1 test outside on the track.
Watt Bike:
– 6 seconds “peak power”
– 3 minute maximal test
– 12 minute steady state
Outside:
– 1 mile Flying Laps test
