Back in March, Zwift and the UCI announced their involvement the Olympic Esports Series 2023, where they are committed to delivering the cycling events at the live series finals at Singapore’s Suntec Centre June 22-25, 2023.
Today they’ve announced the details of the Olympic Esports Series cycling finals which will give live spectators attending the Olympics Esports Week 2023 the opportunity to witness the high intensity of cycling esports first-hand.
Four Teams of Four
The finals of the Olympic Esports Series 2023 will feature four teams of four cyclists – two women and two men – who will compete in a series of six races that will test their physical fitness and mastery of Zwift’s in-game elements. The winners will prove both their cycling and esports skills, and will be the world’s first Olympic Esports Series winners.
Zwift has previously hosted elite cycling esports competitions including the 2020 Virtual Tour de France and all three editions of the UCI Cycling Esports World Championships. The finalists selected (below) to participate in this year’s Olympic Esports Series have proven themselves at the Zwift Grand Prix cycling series and the 2023 UCI Cycling Esports World Championships, and collectively represent 11 nations.
Team Fuego
Lou Bates from Great Britain, Marlene Bjärehed from Sweden, James Barnes from South Africa, and Martin Maertens from Germany.
Team Titans
Vicki Whitelaw from Australia, Linda Klein from the Netherlands, Zack Nehr from USA, and Kjell Power from Belgium.
Team Lava
Alice Lethbridge from Great Britain, Teppo Laurio from Finland, Lionel Vujasin from Belgium, and a fourth rider TBA.
Team Epic
Jacquie Godbe from USA, Charlotte Colclough from Great Britain, Ben Hill from Australia, and a fourth rider TBA.
Race Format and Routes
Building on the successes of the multi-format 2023 UCI Cycling Esports World Championships, each team will take on three challenges in the Olympic Esports Series 2023 Cycling Competition: the Eliminator, the Sprint, and the Climb. Each of these challenges will have a men’s and women’s race. Riders will earn points according to their finishing position, and the team to accumulate the most points will be crowned the winners.
The Eliminator: All riders will take on the Eliminator, which will be held on the hillynew Wee Yin course created specifically for the Olympic Esports Series 2023, featuring 3 ascents of the Sgurr Summit followed by the Glasgow Crit Circuit. The starting fields for men’s and women’s races will be 8 athletes. Each time the race passes through an arch, the last placed athlete will be removed until there are 3 left for the final sprint. Points will be awarded according to final positions and the order of elimination.
The Sprint: Each team will put forward their best male and best female sprinter to take on one lap of Glasgow Crit Circuit in a fast and furious race. The starting fields for these races will be 4 athletes. Points will be awarded at the intermediate sprint (The Clyde Kicker) and at the finish line (Champion’s Sprint).
The Climb – Finally, the team’s best climbers will race the Climb, which will take place on the steep slopes of the Sgurr Summit North climb. Teams will again need to choose their riders carefully – anyone on the start line will need to be able to accelerate uphill in order to secure the win for their team.
Learn More
Other events in the Olympic Esports Series 2023 include Archery (Tic Tac Bow), Baseball (WBSC eBaseball: Power Pros), Chess (Chess.com), Dance (Just Dance), Motor Sport (Gran Turismo), Sailing (Virtual Regatta), Shooting (created in Fortnite), Taekwondo (Virtual Taekwondo), and Tennis (Tennis Clash).
To find out more about the Olympic Esports Series Finals, visit olympics.com/en/esports/olympic-esports-series/finals-singapore
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