At the end of August, the Weihai World Cup will kick off a run of eleven World Cup races in less than three months. Each event will offer points towards Olympic qualification and as such could go a long way in shaping who ultimately does and does not qualify for the 2024 Olympic Games.
Noted for its challenging bike course, Weihai has hosted three prior World Cups (between 2017 and 2019). Back in 2019, Julie Derron and Joao Silva came out on top at the race after making the most of the second discipline.
In this year’s event, the bike could prove to be decisive once more seeing as relatively small start lists have been released.
Who’s there
Gianluca Pozzatti, the winner of last year’s Miyazaki World Cup, will be among the star names in Weihai. He will be joined by Nicola Azzano on the Italian men’s team.
WTCS medallist Lasse Lührs was originally pencilled in to lead the German team. However, he has since been removed from the start list. In his place Valentin Wernz and Benedikt Bettin will comprise the German squad in Weihai. After recording a personal best WTCS finish earlier in the year, Wernz could be a candidate for the win.
Japan will be sending a strong team with the likes of Jumpei Furuya and Ren Sato likely to feature prominently. Aoba Yasumatsu, the winner of the Asia Cup in Sejong, will also be racing while Makoto Odakura, Kyotaro Yoshikawa and Koki Yamamoto complete the Japanese line-up.
The winner of the Americas Cup in Chinchiná, Felix Duchampt, will be the sole representative from Romania. On the note of Americas Cups, Ecuador will be represented by Juan Jose Andrade Figueroa after a successful season at that level.
Meanwhile Irving Perez and Rodrigo Gonzalez will be racing for Mexico. Both are due to race at the Yeongdo World Cup earlier in August and will look to double up on success in Asia.
Stefan Zachäus will lead a Luxembourg trio that also contains Gregor Payet and Bob Haller after a recent bronze medal at the Bundesliga race in Tubingen. Haller notably won the Asia Cup in Pokhara earlier in the year.
James Edgar will look to continue his rise after taking a maiden international win earlier in the year at the African Cup in Troutbeck. He will be joined by Russell White.
Itamar Eshed leads an Israeli cohort that also contains Itamar Levanon and Roee Zoarets. Trent Thorpe (New Zealand) and Gaspar Riveros (Chile) are two other notable names of the men’s start list.
On the women’s side, Niina Kishimoto leads an impressive Japanese contingent. The evergreen Juri Ide and Yuka Sato will be racing while the new generation of Sarika Nakayama, Hiraku Fukuoka, Minori Ikeno, Miyu Sakai and Chisato Nakajima will look to prove themselves at the World Cup level.
Italy will have one of the most rounded women’s teams in Weihai. Bianca Seregni could destroy the field in the water while the likes of Verena Steinhauser and Ilaria Zane will impress on the run. Look for Luisa Iogna-Prat, the Italian champion, to also make an impression at the race.
Eva Daniels will join Zachäus, Haller and Payet in representing Luxembourg. Lisa Perterer and Tanja Stroschneider will also be racing for Austria.
Finally, Hungary will send one of the oldest women in the field as well as one of the youngest. The experienced Zsófia Kovács will be racing while Márta Kropkó will look for a big result as she continues her rise through the U23 ranks.
Main talking points
Home favourites
Junjie Fan will be at the vanguard of a home Chinese team looking to make a mark at the race. Fan made his WTCS debut earlier in the season in Montreal and will look to build up his experience at the world level.
One thing to note is the youth of the Chinese men’s team. Mingxu Li is the only man born before 2000 in line to start in Weihai. As China builds up its depth, it could become a major player in the sport in the future.
In the meantime, they have a bona fide contender for the win in the women’s race. Anqi Huang has won Asia Cup races in Dexing and Taizhou this season and has since made her World Cup debut in Huatulco, in which she finished 21st. A talented runner with pace to burn, she could be a good early bet to claim the gold.
Breakaway buddies
The Japanese duo of Furuya and Yoshikawa launched a major attack during the bike at the Asia Cup in Taizhou earlier in the year. In doing so, Furuya was able to win the race in comfort. Yoshikawa also showcased his aggressive riding style at the Americas Cup in Salinas.
Since making a name for himself in a breakaway at WTCS Cagliari, Furuya has been slowly building a reputation for being one of the leading cyclists on the world stage. On a course as intense as Weihai, he and Yoshikawa could team up once more and leave the field eating their dust.
Another aspect to consider is the tight race for Olympic selection in the Japanese team. Every point will likely matter and a win in Weihai would provide a major boost. At this point, Furuya is the better placed of the pair to qualify for Paris next year. A breakaway in Weihai could therefore be a vital stepping stone on the path to doing so.
Small start lists
Only thirty-three women are due to start which is low for a World Cup. That could be a sign of the busy World Cup schedule catching up with itself as athletes are forced to sit out of events rather than over-race.
Over the coming weeks, further start lists will be released for the subsequent World Cup events and it will be interesting to see how, if at all, attendances are affected by the frequency of the races.
View the full start lists here.
