South Africa’s Rickardo Broxham is hoping for a top-10 result at the Junior Track World Championships in Aigle, Switzerland, this week.
The ProTouch rider, who won the Junior Tour of Ireland last month, will compete in the scratch race tomorrow, individual pursuit on Friday and omnium on Saturday.
“Everyone wants a medal but I will be happy with a top 10. Every single guy on the start line is a contender and with there being qualifying races before the finals, it’s a gamble,” said Broxham.
Rickardo Broxham, 18, will represent South Africa at the Junior Track World Championships in Aigle, Switzerland, this week. Photo: DoubleST
In the scratch race all riders start together, with the winner being the one who is first over the finish line after a certain number of laps. In the individual pursuit two cyclists begin on opposite sides as they race for the fastest time.
The omnium consists of an elimination race where riders are eliminated through various criteria.
“The individual pursuit is simple; it’s 3km flat out, so the strongest guy wins,” Broxham said.
He felt the main challenge presented by the 200m track would be to stay on the black line, which was the fastest.
“I’ve trained like that for the past few weeks, but on race day it will be hard controlling the bike through the banking.
“Another worry is the elimination where I will need to limit my losses. The omnium is good for a road rider on the track and I have distance in the legs, so I feel it might be my best shot.”
He added that it was one of the most dangerous events on the track so he would need to be careful.
“My strategy for the qualifying event in the scratch is just to keep it safe, not do too much and make sure I go through to the final, which will be a flat-out race.
“The pursuit is simple, ride on schedule and do not go too hard in the first 1km. There’s a fine line between not pushing enough and too much.”
The 18-year-old said he had been taking it easy after the Ireland tour, which was a confidence boost as he now knew he could compete with international riders.
“The junior worlds were my focus from the beginning of the year. Of course the road world circuit is more difficult now, but I feel good knowing that in a way I will be able to manage.
“For now I’ll focus on the track and then join the WCC [World Cycling Centre] high performance team and race in Switzerland, France and perhaps Belgium.”
Broxham, from Ermelo, added that what South Africans needed was more exposure to this kind of racing and the experience to be gained from it.
“We aren’t that far off, but the thing is back home we’re 40 juniors and elites starting in the same bunch and in the Belgium tour there were 170 riders.
“It’s such a big difference. The race-craft here is what makes them the riders they are.”
Courtney Smith, aged 17, will represent SA in the junior girls category.
View Broxham’s schedule below:
Thursday
Scratch 7.6km qualification (two heats) 11.30am – 2.36pm
Scratch 10km final 4pm – 6.42pm
Friday
Individual Pursuit qualifying 9am – 3.14pm
Individual Pursuit finals 4pm – 6.51pm
Saturday
Omnium qualification (two heats) 10am – 2.35pm
Omnium elimination 4pm – 7.19pm
