'I messed up that sprint a little bit' – Connor Swift 'pretty gutted' to miss out on closest shot at rainbow at Gravel World Championships

It was a tough near-miss for Connor Swift (Great Britain) at the UCI Gravel World Championships on Sunday, coming the closest he ever has done to a rainbow jersey but missing out by a matter of centimetres.

Swift had been active and animated all day long in Nannup, Australia, ultimately making it into the lead group after his teammate Jenson Young was reeled back from a long breakaway, and he found himself in an elite group of four heading towards the finish line.

He was one of the main aggressors in the group, at one stage nearly going clear with Florian Vermeersch (Belgium), and narrowly avoided disaster when Mads Würtz Schmidt (Denmark) slid out right in front of him on a late corner.

But after over 140km of racing and plenty of attacks, it became clear that the rainbow jersey was going to come down to a four-man sprint. Swift went early to try to seize his chance, and it looked for a long time like he was going to make it, but Magnus Bak Klaris (Denmark) came through right at the last to grab the win, with Vermeersch just pipping Swift to silver, too.

"I was like 'you've got to be on a mission or do something pretty solo', then I was more just thinking if nothing goes, then back my sprint," he explained to the host broadcasters about realising it would come down to a dash for the line. "But yeah, unfortunately, it didn't pay off today, and I'm pretty gutted actually."

Despite the disappointment with bronze – the same result he took at Gravel Worlds in 2023 – the 30-year-old could look back on his ride with positives, at least before he took a gamble in the sprint.

"I felt good. I knew that I was on a really good day. Especially at the top of some of the climbs when there was just three or four of us, I knew I was with the strongest guys on the day, and I knew that I could match anyone who was trying to attack," he explained to Cyclingews after completing his podium duties.

"But I kind of knew also like 30, 40k out that maybe it does come down to a sprint, and maybe that's the best thing [for me]. I think the danger guy today was obviously Mads Schmidt – you let him have a gap, and he just time trials away. So like any movement he went, I was straight on it. Maybe he won't like that, but yeah, that's what you've got to do.

"I think I was just a bit disappointed because maybe I messed up that sprint a little bit. But I just thought if I was first in at like 200 metres to go, where there's a little kink in the road, slightly downhill, that first guy into there wins. But yeah, it didn't quite work out."

The feeling of missing out was made sharper not only by the fact that Swift has travelled halfway around the world to chase this rainbow jersey, but also the feeling he had that there aren't many races where he'll get closer to a world title.

"I've done the Gravel Worlds every edition since 2023, so it's a super nice way just to finish the season, going after a World Championship jersey," he said. "And if you think about it, in terms of cycling as a whole sport, the only World Championship jersey that I've got a real shot at getting and achieving is this one. I'm not going to win the road race, I'm not going to win the TT, I'm not going to win on the track because I don't do track and I'm not going to win cyclo-cross.

"So if I really want that jersey, it's this event, and that's the reason why I came out here. I've been on the podium before, it suits me well, but unfortunately today, two steps away."

Though not a gravel full-timer, Swift is a fairly familiar face at gravel races, not just the World Championships but at UK-based World Series events and the National Championships, which he won in 2024, squeezing in racing where he can alongside his road role for Netcompany Ineos.

"It takes you back to your roots of even before I was pro, you're racing your bike, you pin the number on, and there's no one in your ear telling you what to do, you can just get out there and go after it," he said of the discipline. "If you make a mistake, it's on you. If you get a result, it's obviously off your own back.

"It's just really pure racing. I feel like because there's not anyone really at the minute [with] teammates burning guys and then positioning and everything, there's not much draft and benefit in gravel. So normally the strongest guy wins and, for me, characteristics-wise just a super solid hard day on the bike suits me well. That's why gravel suits me, and I really enjoy it."

Going seriously for gold, the World Championships were certainly not just a fun season-ender for Swift, it does mark the end of his year, and it will soon be time to look ahead to his 2027 road campaign. He confirmed to Cyclingnews that he's set to start his season at the Tour Down Under before heading to the Classics, and then racing either the Giro d'Italia or Tour de France, with a special home Grand Depart on the cards for the latter.

And he'll definitely keep squeezing the gravel in, too, with another shot at a rainbow jersey next September in France.

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