UCI Track Champions League: How to watch, TV schedule, live stream, start times as Emma Finucane set to star
Updated 23/11/2024 at 10:31 GMT
The road season has finally come to an end, but there is still plenty of top-class cycling action to take in, with the UCI Track Champions League getting underway on Saturday, November 23 at the Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines Velodrome in France. Find all the info you need to know here, including the TV schedule, live stream details, start times, and where the action takes place.
'Best year of my life' - Finucane on recent success, looking ahead to TCL
Video credit: TNT Sports
The UCI Track Champions League gets underway this week, with five rounds of racing kicking off on Saturday, November 23 in France.
The Velodrome National in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, just outside Paris, hosted the Olympic track events this summer and is back in the spotlight once again.
Now in its fourth season, the Track Champions League boasts a stacked field of contenders competing for the winners' stylish blue jerseys.
Riders taking part this year include GB stars Katie Archibald, Emma Finucane and new arrival Matthew Richardson, who swapped an Australia kit for a GB one after this summer's Games.
Each round will see some of the sport's top riders go head-to-head for victories in the Sprint and Endurance categories, with the individual sprint and keirin making up the former and elimination and scratch races the latter.
After the action kicks off in Paris this weekend, the series will then head to Apeldoorn in the Netherlands for Rounds 2 and 3. London hosts Round 4 and the Grand Finale in early December, when the 2024 winners will be crowned.
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WHO ARE THE DEFENDING CHAMPIONS AND ONES TO WATCH?
Netherlands' Harrie Lavreysen is a sight to behold on the track and has proved nearly unbeatable in recent years.
He secured a clean sweep of Olympic and World team and individual sprint golds this year and will return to action to defend his Champions League Sprint title.
Perma-rival Matthew Richardson, now racing in GB colours, has been one of the few men to beat the Dutchman - including in the 2022 Sprint overall standings - and is likely to be his biggest challenger.
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Lavreysen whitewashes team-mate Hoogland in men’s sprint final to claim another gold medal
Video credit: TNT Sports
New Zealand's Ellesse Andrews will also aim for back-to-back Champions League titles, just months after securing double Olympic gold in the individual sprint and keirin.
Her rivalry with Emma Finucane - who defended her individual sprint World title in Ballerup, Denmark last month and earned another rainbow jersey in the team sprint - looks set to re-ignite in Paris.
In the Endurance competition, Canada's Dylan Bibic also looks well placed to claim another blue jersey after his triumph last year. But Danish elimination world champion Tobias Aagard Hansen, last year's runner-up, Will Tidball, and 2022 overall winner Claudio Imhof are also strong contenders.
Japan's Eiya Hashimoto led in the early stages of the competition last year but will not return to mount a challenge, having broken his collarbone in a nasty crash just a week before the start of the series.
The women's Endurance field looks similarly open. Katie Archibald looked back to her best in Ballerup as she claimed victory in the team pursuit, her sixth world title. But while she looked in fine form to defend her Champions League trophy from last season, she has not raced since dislocating her shoulder shortly after Worlds.
The Brit has proven time and time again she can bounce back from injuries and the most gruelling of setbacks, but she is likely to face extra pressure this time around from compatriots Neah Evans, Jessica Roberts and Anna Morris, as well as Norway's Anita Stenberg.
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Finucane continues superb 2024 with sprint gold at World Championships
Video credit: TNT Sports
HOW TO WATCH THE UCI TRACK CHAMPIONS LEAGUE?
Eurosport and discovery+ will once again be the home of the series, with all the action broadcast live from each round on both platforms. Viewers can watch uninterrupted and ad-free on streaming service discovery+.
TRACK CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 2024 TV SCHEDULE
| ROUND | DATE | LOCATION | ON-AIR TIME (BST) | END TIME |
| 1 | Saturday, November 23 | Velodrome National / Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, France | 16:00 | 20:00 |
| 2 | Friday, November 29 | Omnisport Apeldoorn / Apeldoorn, Netherlands | 18:00 | 21:30 |
| 3 | Saturday,November 30 | Omnisport Apeldoorn / Apeldoorn, Netherlands | 15:00 | 18:30 |
| 4 | Friday, December 6 | Lee Valley VeloPark / London, UK | 19:00 | 22:30 |
| 5 (Grand Finale) | Saturday, December 7 | Lee Valley VeloPark / London, Uk | 17:30 | 21:00 |
Stream top cycling action including the 2024 UCI Track Champions League live on discovery+
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