Sir Chris Hoy believes Katie Archibald is on track for next summer’s Paris Olympics after seeing her storm to overall victory in the UCI Track Champions League.
Two-time Olympic champion Archibald admitted she was far from her best at the World Championships in Glasgow in August, when the intense spotlight of a home worlds came as she was still coming to terms with the tragic loss of her partner Rab Wardell 12 months earlier.
But just a few months later, the 29-year-old Scot showed her class to win the Champions League crown for a second time, wrapping up her victory during the final two rounds in London at the weekend.
“It’s incredibly impressive,” Hoy told the PA news agency. “We’re starting to see that spark coming back, the smile, the enjoyment of the racing. Just life coming back into her after what was an incredibly difficult year.
“She wasn’t at her best at the world championships and I think this is a significant step forward from the worlds and it really does bode well for what is a massively important year for her and for the team.
“And they need her. The team really does rely on a few big-name individuals, not to carry the team but to inspire the team.
“When the big names are firing and on form it lifts everyone else, so she’s absolutely central to the British Cycling campaign and it’s looking good.
“I think she’s definitely getting better and getting to where she needs to be.”
The made-for-TV Champions League, which has just completed its third season, sees endurance riders like Archibald compete in two races per round, the scratch race and the elimination.
It is a long way from the team pursuit and the Madison that Archibald will aim for in Paris, and comprises only two of the four elements of the omnium, but it will be a significant confidence booster all the same.
“This is not a direct comparison to those events but it almost doesn’t matter,” added Hoy, who is an ambassador for the Champions League.
“It’s about how she’s responding to the competition and getting inspired by the crowd and just starting to bring back that spark and getting her life back on track after what she’s been through.
“As a rider you want to use the event in the right way. I would want to come in and see it as an opportunity to learn about my rivals, see them in some different situations and try different tactics.
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“If it doesn’t work out it’s not the end of the world, you’ve not missed out on a world title or an Olympic medal, but having said that the overall Champions League jersey and trophy is a massive thing now, it’s being recognised.”
Although star names like Archibald and Dutch sprinter Harrie Lavreysen drew the crowds, this season saw arguably the weakest field yet contest the Champions League with several riders preferring to focus their training elsewhere as the clock ticks down to Paris.
However, Hoy said he believed the still young series – which aims to elevate the profile of track cycling beyond the Olympics and annual world championships – is developing well.
“I think it’s pretty close to what I hoped it would be,” he said. “I think they’ve delivered exactly what they promised and probably more.
“This year it’s been a challenge with it being an Olympic year but the organisers aren’t trying to hide that, and I think next year there will be a rebound when, post-Olympics, riders are freed of the pressure and stress of an Olympic year and they want to go out and ride their bikes and have fun.”
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Glasgow confirmed as hosts for 2026 Commonwealth Games
The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) has confirmed Glasgow as the host city of the 2026 Commonwealth Games.
The 23rd edition of the Commonwealth Games will take place in Scotland from Thursday 23 July to Sunday 2 August 2026. Glasgow also hosted the games back in 2014.
Glasgow 2026 will feature a 10-sport programme concentrated across four venues within an eight-mile corridor, ensuring an action-packed broadcast schedule across each day of competition and making the event accessible and appealing to spectators looking to enjoy the multi-sport environment and festival feel.
With over 500,000 tickets to be made available at a future date, there will be around 3,000 of the best athletes competing from up to 74 Commonwealth nations and territories that represent 2.5 billion people – one-third of the world’s population.
Para sport will once again be fully integrated as a key priority and point of difference for the Games, with six Para sports included on the sport programme.
The sports programme will include Athletics and Para Athletics (Track & Field), Swimming and Para Swimming, Artistic Gymnastics, Track Cycling and Para Track Cycling, Netball, Weightlifting and Para Powerlifting, Boxing, Judo, Bowls and Para Bowls, and 3x3 Basketball and 3x3 Wheelchair Basketball.
The Games will take place across four venues: Scotstoun Stadium, Tollcross International Swimming Centre, Emirates Arena – including the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome, and the Scottish Event Campus (SEC). Athletes and support staff will be housed in hotel accommodation.
Commonwealth Games Federation CEO Katie Sadleir NZOM said, ‘’On behalf of the entire Commonwealth Sport Movement, we are delighted to officially confirm that the 2026 Commonwealth Games will take place in the host city of Glasgow. The Games promise to be a truly immersive festival of sport and celebration of culture and diversity that inspires athletes and sports – with a fan experience more accessible than ever before.”
'You can be where Julien Alfred is': Joanna Alfred encourages aspiring athletes to reach for their goals
Joanna Alfred is a proud mother, and it is clear for all to see.
But while she basks in the accomplishments of her daughter Julien Alfred and the recognition that comes with having a historic double Olympic medallist in the family, the senior Alfred used the opportunity to remind aspiring athletes that they too can become a national hero like her daughter.
“Yes, she is one of the biggest heroes today because of where she came from and where she started. And I also want children to learn from that and understand that it doesn't matter where you come from; you can still be where Julien Alfred is,” a beaming Joanna said as the island continues to celebrate her daughter's homecoming.
Having come from humble beginnings in Ciceron, situated in St Lucia’s capital Castries, Alfred honed her talent overtime and rose through the ranks on her way to copping an historic 100m gold and 200m silver at the Paris Olympic Games in August. Prior to that, she became the first St Lucian to win a World Indoor 60m title.
Those accomplishments followed an impressive NCAA campaign in which she copped the NCAA indoor 60m and 200m titles, as well as the outdoor honours over 100m and 200m. She was also the 2023 Bowerman Award winner, the prize given to the outstanding collegiate track and field athlete each year.
While the journey was by no means easy for either Alfred or her family, Joanna pointed to one thing in particular that assisted her daughter along the way –parental support.
“You can support your child. God will do the rest. So everything's going to fall into place,” she declared.
“They say it takes a village to raise a child, and indeed it does because if I didn't have the support of at least Twa Ti Ney [Julien’s local coach, Cuthbert Modeste] when her father passed, he became the father figure in this young lady’s life, then again I would have to struggle, so it took a village to raise a child as well,” Joanna shared.
Beyond the background support, Joanna pointed out that Alfred’s grit, determination, and unflinching desire to become a successful athlete were the foundation on which she rose to prominence and inevitably became the sprint queen of the island with a population of just about 180,000 people.
“It was not the food on her plate but the food in her mind that really encouraged her because even when she faced situations, the food in her mind really encouraged her to be where she is,” Joanna declared.
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