Esow Alben becomes the first Indian to take part in UCI Champions League

The second round of the competition is set to be held on November 19 in Berlin, Germany.

The 2nd edition UCI Cycling Champions League got underway in Mallorca, Spain. Top cyclists from around the globe take part in this event. It is held across different countries in a five-round series. The first round got over on November 12, 2022. The second round is set to be held on November 19 in Berlin, Germany. Esow Alben became the first Indian to take part in the Championships.

First Indian

This is the first time a cyclist from India is set to feature in the prestigious Champions League. Esow Alben the youngster from Andaman and Nicobar Islands will feature in both the sprint and Keirin events. In the sprint event, the top athlete from six heats qualifies for the semi-finals. In the Keirin section, the top 2 from the three heats qualify for the finals.

Esow Alben in both events could not progress to the medals round finishing 3rd in sprint and 4th in Keirin heats respectively. Overall the Indian finished round 1 with four points in the sprint category (sprint+keirin). He is now placed 16th out of the 18 cyclists taking part.

Junior World Cup medal winner

Esow Alben first won a medal for India in the junior World Cup held in 2018 and since then has been one of the promising stars. The 21-year-old has won one gold medal, two silver medals and a bronze at the Junior Championships followed by several medals at the Junior Asian Championships. 

Esow Alben along with Ronaldo Singh and David Beckham are the bright futures from India having won several medals in the junior category and transitioning well in the senior category too. Indian cycling contingent had a poor outing at the Commonwealth Games where they competed with Australia and Great Britain who are one of the best in Cycling. The Indians had won several medals at the Asian Championships held in India recently.