On Saturday 18 February, the third edition of the UCI eSport World Championship will be held. This year’s edition will take place in a different format from previous editions. Instead of just one race, it is conducted in Battle Royal style over three races, where only the top 30 in race 1 can start race 2, and only the top 10 in race 2 can advance to the final. In the final, the last racer in each point requested will be eliminated from the race until 3 racers are left who will claim the rainbow jersey.

The race will be run on the new Scottish map that was recently launched in conjunction with this year’s world championships. The course that will be used in WC this year will take place in a world that Zwift has created specifically for the World Cup and is based in Scotland in the game. This is to keep the thread going with the remainder of this year’s championships in Glasgow. In recent years, Zwift has created tracks in conjunction with road WC for marketing, but this is the first time that eSport WC will take place on the platform in conjunction with world championships.

This year the men started first and their first race started at 7:15pm. They ran all three races before the women started at 20:44. The race can be viewed on the Eurosport/GCN and Zwift YouTube channels (Zwift – YouTube).

This year’s Norwegian team consists of 4 men and 3 women. Stian Lersveen qualified for the championship through the Continental Qualifiers. The rest of the teams are selected by the national team management in collaboration with the E-Sport branch committee. This year’s drivers are:

Man:

Vidar Mehl (Raufoss & Gjøvik SK/Movistar eTeam)
Håvard Gjeldnes (Trollheimen SK/ KALAS eSRT p/b Wahoo BIRK)
Johannes Kulset (Ringerike SK / Uno-X Pro Cycling Team)
Stian Lersveen (Follo SK / KALAS eSRT p/b Wahoo BIRK)

Woman:

Anne Nevin (SK City Foundation/Socks4watts/ZU4R eSport)
Ingeborg Hestad (Kvinnherad Cycling Club/ ZU4R eSport)
Emma Julie Dyrhovden (Åsane CK/ ZU4R eSport)

All riders participate “from home” (some countries have pooled riders).

Because Zwift games have many natural limitations, Zwift and UCI are taking steps to prevent exploitation of existing variables. Most of it is in preparation for the event.

Setting the wrong height and weight can give an athlete a huge advantage in performance. Therefore, athletes must submit a height and weight video one week before the competition, as well as a new weight video 1-2 hours before the start of the competition. The video must have the time and date visible to confirm when it was created, and the number must match exactly what is shown in the video.

The rollers that will be used in the races for the athletes are delivered directly from event sponsor Wahoo. It has also been announced that the scrolls will be sent back after the event to ensure that they have not been tampered with.

Drivers must also submit data that can be used to verify the performance they have had throughout the championship, either through the numbers they score outdoors or through tests on the reels. This is also a way to prevent the reel from being tampered with.

If there is a clear violation of the rules during the championship, then Race Control (a commission sent by the UCI) has the option to expel a driver.

We root for our 7 hopeful and skilled racers and wish them all the best in WC eSport!

Published 16/02/2023