Stage 1 of the elite Zwift Games happened over the weekend, and it was an exciting smashfest of top-tier talent! Below you’ll find Zwift’s complete press release on the men’s events.
The three race Sprint Championships had a stacked startlist of the world’s best cycling esports specialists from all over the world. Tactics, race craft, and peak performance were needed from any rider hoping to make it through to the final race. Only the top 30 made it through to the second race, only the top 10 from the second race had the chance to claim the top prize; $7,000 and a Gold Concept Z1 bike.
Race One
Taking place on the brand new Loop de Loop course, the first of Zwift Games Sprint races had a twitchy first few kilometres. The peloton waited until the first Hilly KOM ascent before picking up the pace and with nine kilometres to go, Nico Severa made the first meaningful attack and pushed a gap out to over 20 seconds. Vidal Mehl was the next to break off the front with what looked like an overly ambitious attack three kilometres from the line with the pack close behind. Mehl made it stick though and caught Severa with 300 metres to go and took victory 0.1 seconds ahead of the pack with the top 30 all finishing within one second.
Race Two
Next up was another new course, the Jurassic Coast route. A few minor attacks in the first half of the race including from Cycling Esports World Champion Bjørn Andreassen, making a statement that he wasn’t looking to just make up numbers. The bunch stayed together until 8 kilometres to go, as fan favourite Teppo Laurio hit the front before Hüseyin Çelebi broke away and built a lead of 8 seconds with 3 kilometres to go. As the finish line approached Haavard Gjeldnes took Zwift craft to the next level, he’d barely featured throughout the race but timed his sprint perfectly, taking 1st place. Big names missed out on the top 10 including USA Cycling National Champion Brian Duffy Jr and Andreassenn.
Race Three
Glasgow Crit Circuit hosted the showdown between the world’s best Cycling Esports sprinters, just over a year since the same course hosted the Cycling Esports World Championships in 2023. A quiet first lap was followed up with a rapid second. Gjeldnes and Bart Van Den Eeckhaut held a 10 second gap the second time up the Clyde Kicker but by lap three the race was back together. Michał Kamiński tested his competitor’s legs with just over a lap to go, pushing over 8 w/kg but the other nine riders quickly reeled him in. The stage looked to be set for a bunch sprint. As the group of ten descended the Clyde Kicker for the final time with the distance counter measuring under 1 kilometre to go, many commentators on the live YouTube broadcast were pointing out Holden Comeau as the favourite due to his impressive peak power. Kamiński, comfortably sitting at the back, dropped his Draft Powerup, put the hammer down, and didn’t look back.
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