The roster of 70 invited athletes to compete within the second yr of the Life Time Grand Prix introduced by Mazda was introduced late Thursday, with defending champions Haley Smith and Keegan Swenson amongst these returning subsequent yr.
Organisers expanded the sector of riders to 35 professional girls and 35 professional male riders, up from 30 in every class within the inaugural season. As an additional incentive, Life Time will cowl entry charges to sequence occasions for the chosen athletes.
Just a few of the brand new contenders who didn’t take part within the inaugural sequence are Lauren De Crescenzo and Matt Beers. De Crescenzo, who mixes highway and gravel racing along with her Cinch Biking professional group, received the Unbound Gravel 200 in 2021 and in 2022 completed second to winner and eventual Grand Prix total runner-up Sofia Gómez Villafañe.
“I’m able to compete in North America’s premiere off-road sequence,” De Crescenzo mentioned in a Life Time media launch. “I wasn’t prepared in 2022, however I’ve put within the work by MTBing 3 instances per week and racing cyclocross for the primary time ever this off season. I’m able to tackle 2023 and go for the general within the sequence.”
The winner of 2021 Cape Epic, South African Beers completed seventh this previous yr at Leadville MTB 100 however was not a part of the sequence.
“I believe I can present that racing in Europe is not the one method for South Africans to indicate their power. And displaying that gravel is turning into a viable choice for riders sooner or later,” the 28-year-old from Cape City mentioned.
Among the many different new names on the beginning lists this yr are a bunch of cyclocross riders from France’s Caroline Mani and US riders Raylyn Nuss, the reigning Pan-American champion, and Crystal Anthony for the professional girls, with the professional males’s discipline together with former US elite males’s champion Eric Brunner and present US males’s single-speed champion Kerry Werner.
“After following this previous season, I took an interest within the format and the ability set required to win the general. I believe essentially the most well-rounded bicycle owner comes out on high. I am excited for the prospect to be part of the premiere gravel sequence on this planet, and embrace the tradition of gravel,” Nuss mentioned.
Riders like Gómez Villafañe, Sarah Sturm, Emily Newsom, Alexey Vermeulen, Russell Finsterwald and Cole Paton – who have been all close to the highest of the leaderboard in 2022 – are additionally returning to the fray.
There can be a major alteration to the format, with the addition of a seventh occasion for 2023, which at the moment stays undisclosed. The six founding off-road occasions return for the majority of the schedule, starting on the Sea Otter Traditional in Monterey, California on April 9 with the longer Fuego cross-country mountain bike race, 100km as an alternative of 80km. The wild card occasion can be introduced in mid-January.
The entire prize purse will stay the identical, $250,000, to be divided equally among the many high 10 feminine and male riders on the conclusion of the sequence. The highest male and high feminine every take house $25,000. Standings to find out the highest 10 can be primarily based on factors earned from any of the 5 occasions.
Three occasions – Fuego XL at Sea Otter Traditional, Crusher within the Tushar, Chequamegon MTB Pageant, Sea Otter Traditional – every provide particular person occasion purses, for which Life Time Grand Prix athletes are additionally eligible.
The ultimate occasion within the sequence, Life Time Huge Sugar Gravel on October 21, is obligatory for all rivals, serving as a tiebreaker if wanted.
Life Time Grand Prix introduced by Mazda 2023 sequence schedule:
- April 22 – Fuego XL 100K cross-country MTB, Life Time Sea Otter Traditional introduced by Continental in Monterey, California
- June 3 – 200-mile Garmin Unbound Gravel introduced by Craft Sportswear in Emporia, Kansas
- July 8 – 69-mile Life Time Crusher within the Tushar introduced by The Creamery in Beaver, Utah
- August 12 – 104-mile Phases Biking Leadville Path 100 MTB in Leadville, Colorado
- September 16 – 40-mile Life Time Chequamegon MTB introduced by Trek in Cable, Wisconsin
- October 21 – 100-mile Life Time Huge Sugar Gravel introduced by Mazda in Bentonville, Arkansas
- TBD – ‘Wild Card’ occasion
Professional girls’s discipline for 2023
- Crystal Anthony, 42, Bentonville, Ark.
- Ella Bloor, 27, Kingston, Australia
- Chelsea Bolton, 33, Park Metropolis, Utah
- Ellen Campbell, 25, Durango, Colo.
- Catherine Colyn, 26, Paarl, South Africa
- Lauren De Crescenzo, 32, Atlanta, Ga.
- Rebecca Fahringer, 33, Bend, Ore.,
- Maude Farrell, 31, Redwood Metropolis, Calif.
- Sofia Gómez Villafañe, 28, Heber Metropolis, Utah
- Emma Grant, 31, Studying, England
- Isabella Hyser, 19, Huntsville, Ala.
- Heather Jackson, 38, Bend, Ore.
- Isabel King, 32, Los Angeles, Calif.
- Caroline Mani, 35, Besancon, France
- Holly Mathews, 34, Longmont, Colo.
- Sarah Max, 47, Bend, Ore.
- Deanna Mayles, 29, Colorado Springs, Colo.
- Julie Momber, 35, Grand Rapids, Mich.,
- Jessica Mullins, 44, Littleton, Colo.
- Angela Naeth, 40, Brewster, Mass.
- Emily Newsom, 39, Fort Price, Texas
- Raylyn Nuss, 31, St. Louis, Mo.
- Paige Onweller, 33, Grand Rapids, Mich.
- Hannah Otto, 26, Millcreek, Utah
- Jenna Rinehart, 38, Mankato, Minn.
- Hannah Shell, 31, Longmont, Colo.
- Danielle Shrosbree, 28, London, England
- Alexis Skarda, 33, Grand Junction, Colo.
- Haley Smith, 29, Waterloo, Quebec
- Sarah Sturm, 32, Durango, Colo.
- Starla Teddergreen, 43, Longmont, Colo.,
- Caroline Tory, 32, Snowmass, Colo.
- Leah Van der Linden, 28, Boulder, Colo.
- Ruth Winder, 29, Nederland, Colo.
- Anna Yamauchi, 22, Truckee, Calif.
Professional males’s discipline 2023
- Matthew Beers, 28, Cape City, South Africa
- John Bortselmann, 31, Lincoln, Neb.
- Robert Britton, 38, Victoria, British Columbia
- Zach Calton, 25, Ogden, Utah,
- Griffin Easter, 31, Park Metropolis, Utah
- Russell Finsterwald, 31, Colorado Springs, Colo.
- Howard Grotts, 29, Durango, Colo.
- Lance Haidet, 24, San Luis Obispo, Calif.
- Alex Howes, 34, Nederland, Colo.
- Dylan Johnson, 27, Brevard, NC
- Brendan Johnston, 31, Canberra, Australia
- Andrew L’Esperance, 31, Halifax, Nova Scotia
- Bradyn Lange, 23, Mendocino, Calif.
- Taylor Lideen, 33, Bentonville, Ark.
- Konny Looser, 33, Hinwil, Switzerland,
- Payson McElveen, 29, Durango, Colo.
- Lachlan Morton, 30, Boulder, Colo.
- Tasman Nankervis, 27, Bendigo, Australia
- Logan Owen, 27, Bremerton, Wash.
- Cole Paton, 25, Cashmere, Wash.
- Kiel Reijnen, 35, Bainbridge Island, Wash.
- Adam Roberge, 25, Prevost, Quebec
- Nathan Spratt, 27, Salt Lake Metropolis, Utah
- Peter Stetina, 35, Santa Rosa, Calif.
- Keegan Swenson, 28, Heber Metropolis, Utah
- Kyle Trudeau, 29, Tucson, Ariz.
- Alexey Vermeulen, 28, Boulder, Colo.
- Kerry Werner, 31, Vinton, Va.,
- Brennan Wertz, 25, Mill Valley, Calif.
- Innokenty Zavyalov, 31, Minneapolis, Minn.
- Tobin Ortenblad, 28, Santa Cruz, Calif.
- Ryan Standish, 29, South Salt Lake, Utah
- Jack Odron, 20, Denver, Colo.
- Ian Lopez De San Roman, 19, Sebastopol, Calif.
