Is AusCycling squeezing the 2025 Esports National Championship hybrid event into a road cycling-shaped hole?
By Australian Cycling Esports National Champion Kate Trdin
With the esports season winding down, national federations have begun showcasing their top riders at their respective national championship events, setting an impressive standard across the board. Sweden and Denmark both hosted live finals, while the USA and Canada ran their championships virtually—just a few examples of how the landscape continues to evolve.
The 2025 season has also marked a shift in platforms, with many national federations moving their events from Zwift to MyWhoosh. It’s a move that makes sense, aligning with the UCI’s decision to award hosting rights for the Esports World Championships to MyWhoosh through 2026. As an elite racer—and the 2024 Australian National Champion—it’s felt like an eternity waiting for AusCycling to announce details for the 2025 Australian National Championships.
As expected, AusCycling has confirmed the 2025 Nationals will be held on MyWhoosh. The events are scheduled for April 11, with the Elite Men’s and Women’s races kicking off at 7:00 p.m. AEST. Masters and Juniors will race the day prior on April 10.
Both championships will feature a roughly 20km scratch race on MyWhoosh’s punchy Wollongong course. Racing will take place both online and in person at Queensland University of Technology’s The Cube venue. The top three men and women from the 2024 Nationals have been invited to race on site, along with three additional riders selected at AusCycling’s discretion. Everyone else will compete remotely from home.
All participants are required to complete MyWhoosh’s Power Passport test as part of the verification process prior to race day.
While it’s encouraging to see AusCycling throwing more support behind cycling esports, it still feels like they’re trying to squeeze esports into a road cycling-shaped hole. For one, riders need to purchase AusCycling’s $350 “race all disciplines” membership for insurance purposes just to be eligible. That price point feels excessive when you consider the significantly lower risks involved in indoor racing compared to the road.
Then there’s the qualification process—or lack thereof. Unlike in 2024, when there was a formal pathway to the championship final, this year AusCycling has opted for a straight final with no qualifying races. While it saves them time and effort, it takes away from the significance of the live event. Not every finalist will be racing on site, and there’s little incentive for riders to make the trip to Brisbane when they could race from home on their own optimized setup with familiar equipment and fine-tuned cooling.
Add in the delay in final results due to MyWhoosh’s performance verification process, and it’s hard to see what draws athletes—or spectators—to the live event. From both a performance and financial standpoint, competing from home may well be the smarter option.
That said, it’s good to finally have answers. The announcement comes just 33 days before race day, so it’s time to get cracking! Good luck to all of the racers.
Semi-retired after more than 20 years as the owner and director of a private Orthopedic Physical Therapy practice, Chris now enjoys the freedom to dedicate himself to his passions—virtual cycling and writing.
Driven to give back to the sport that has enriched his life with countless experiences and relationships, he founded a non-profit organization, TheDIRTDadFund. In the summer of 2022, he rode 3,900 miles from San Francisco to his “Gain Cave” on Long Island, New York, raising support for his charity.
His passion for cycling shines through in his writing, which has been featured in prominent publications like Cycling Weekly, Cycling News, road.cc, Zwift Insider, Endurance.biz, and Bicycling. In 2024, he was on-site in Abu Dhabi, covering the first live, in-person UCI Cycling Esports World Championship.
His contributions to cycling esports have not gone unnoticed, with his work cited in multiple research papers exploring this evolving discipline. He sits alongside esteemed esports scientists as a member of the Virtual Sports Research Network and contributes to groundbreaking research exploring the new frontier of virtual physical sport. Chris co-hosts The Virtual Velo Podcast, too.
Kate is an elite racer for Esports team BL13 p/b Level Velo. In 2024, she won the Australian National Esports Championship and placed 24th at the Esports Cycling World Championships. She holds a Bachelor of Psychological Science and a Master’s in Speech Pathology from the University of Tasmania and works as a clinical speech pathologist. An avid reader and writer, Kate enjoys sharing insights into cycling esports and crafting thoughtful stories about the sport.
