UCI Esports World Championships 2022

Zwift caught the world’s eye when it hosted the inaugural UCI Cycling eSports World Championships at the end of 2020. Never before had the international governing body of cycling – the UCI – been involved in the world of virtual racing. Zwift had been around for a few years, of course, but had grown to new heights during the coronavirus pandemic. With thousands of races cancelled around the world and cyclists stuck inside during lockdown, millions turned to Zwift.

With an adjusted position in the calendar, Zwift will host the second running of the UCI Cycling eSports World Championships on 26 February 2022. The winner of the men's and women's races will each receive the UCI Cycling eSports World Champions Jersey which they can wear on Zwift, as well as an equal prize payout to the tune of €8,000, plus €4,000 for second place, and €2,000 for third.

Anyone who knows how to race on Zwift or has ridden around Zwift’s New York City world knows that it is the opposite of flat. The real-life roads of Central Park have been replicated in Zwift, with a constant flow of twists and turns, ups and downs around the entire park. However, Zwift then added a series of fictional roads above the city, which you can climb up to on either the north side or south side of the virtual Central Park.

In November 2021, Zwift hosted the Continental Qualifiers to the 2022 UCI Cycling eSports World Championships, wherein the Top 5 finishers from each race - both men’s and women’s - would earn a spot on the start line of the 2022 eSports World Champs. The Qualifiers were held over two laps of the Figure 8 Forward course in Watopia which, to many riders' dismay, was relatively flat. In fact, most of the Continental Qualifiers ended in a bunch sprint, which became a sticking point as riders were trying to qualify for a race that finishes on a steep climb.

As previously mentioned, the top five finishers from each race earned a spot on their respective National Federation’s team for the 2022 UCI eSports World Championships once their result was confirmed by Zwift and ZADA. The European women’s race granted the top nine riders spots at Worlds, which was never fully explained by Zwift, but likely has to do with smaller women’s fields in other Continental regions.

Those who earned their Worlds qualification through these races then had a few items added to their to-do list before the World Championships. Each rider’s data was fully verified by ZADA, and then added to their National Federation’s squad. Then, each athlete was added to a registered testing pool for anti-doping purposes, which meant that they would likely be tested by anti-doping authorities and may be required to submit whereabouts information.

These videos follow a strict protocol that is laid out bullet point by bullet point, and each video must be live-streamed and or timestamped, as well as including the rider’s face, and done in full racing kit. Zwift may be updating some of their technical regulations ahead of the UCI eSports World Championships, but the current rules state that riders must be on a direct drive smart trainer or smart bike with a manufacturer claimed accuracy of +/-2 per cent (Wahoo Kickr V5 for Worlds), dual record using a separate power meter and head unit device, use the cadence sensor connected to the smart trainer, and use a heart monitor for the duration of the race.

Perhaps the toughest challenge of the ZADA process is the infamous ZADA test, which is a structured power test that includes all-out 1-minute, 4-minute, 7-minute, and 12-minute efforts, plus two 15-second sprints, in that order. The ZADA test must be completed within an allotted time frame, and the entire ride must be live-streamed from start to finish, with a camera showing both the rider and smart trainer, the calibration of the power sources, and the entire warm-up and cool-down. Needless to say, it’s a laborious process.

100 per cent trainer difficulty is a feature new to the Zwift racing rulebook as recently as December 2021, and may be utilised at the Zwift World Championships, though Zwift has not yet confirmed this. In previous seasons of the Zwift Racing League Premier Division and the inaugural UCI Cycling eSports World Championships – the highest level and most restrictive events in Zwift racing – a rider’s trainer difficulty (the virtual representation of gradients) was required to be 50 per cent. That meant that a 14-per cent grade felt like a 7 per cent grade in terms of the resistance applied through the pedals.

But if the requirement is moved up to 100-per cent trainer difficulty, then a 16-per cent gradient will feel like a 16-per cent gradient, which will present some interesting challenges to the Worlds competitors. Personally, I had never before used my 39T chainring in a Zwift race, but with a final climb like the NYC KOM Forward, I’ll be sure to triple-check the function of my front derailleur before the race.

When looking at the course for the 2022 UCI eSports World Championships, there are three possible scenarios to decide the winner: a long-range breakaway, a solo attack on the final climb, or a reduced bunch sprint. Riders who specialize in three-minute efforts will be the favourites should the race come down to the final climb, especially those with a strong 20-second punch which will be required to get over the final bump with a couple hundred meters to go.

Zwift has yet to announce which PowerUps will be available in the 2022 UCI Cycling eSports World Championships, but we are expecting the Zwift PowerUps to have a large impact on the race. Zwift typically chooses three different PowerUps for a given race, and with seven chances to grab one throughout 2.5 laps of the Knickerbocker course, riders will have plenty of opportunities to obtain their preferred one.

In-game equipment will also be neutralised during the World Championships, which means that all wheels and bikes will be on a level playing field and riders can choose whichever equipment they’d like. We’re not sure if that extends to Tron bikes (Zwift's Concept bike that is universally the fastest in normal scenarios) or Buffalo bikes (the replica heavy-duty bikes built with World Bicycle Relief as cheap transport in Africa), but that would certainly be a sight to see.

Let’s break down this climb a little further. Starting from the roads of Central Park, the climb is actually 1.7km long rather than 1.36km, with that extra ramp bringing you from the valley floor to the start of the official KOM. The first uphill section is around six per cent for 250m, before flattening off as the KOM begins. Then, there are two short ramps of 15 per cent before a 200m flat section – this allows many riders to catch up from the first minute of climbing.

It is incredibly difficult to form a winning breakaway on Zwift – any seasoned Zwift racer will tell you that – and the UCI Cycling eSports World Championships are no different. Perhaps a group could go away on the flats, and stick it all the way to the finish. Or maybe the entire peloton comes into the final climb altogether. As with any bike race – real or virtual – anything could happen. But if I had to guess, I’d say that a reduced group of 30-35 riders will come into base of the final climb together. The group will string out but not shatter and there will be 20 riders left sprinting for the win in the final 200 meters.

Zach is a freelance writer, the head of ZNehr Coaching, and an elite-level rider in road, track, and e-racing. He writes about everything cycling-related, from buyer's guides to product reviews and feature articles to power analyses. After earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Exercise Science at Marian University-Indianapolis, Zach discovered a passion for writing that soon turned into a full-fledged career. In between articles, Zach spends his time working with endurance athletes of all abilities and ages at ZNehr Coaching. After entering the sport at age 17, Zach went on to have a wonderful road racing career that included winning the 2017 Collegiate National Time Trial Championships and a 9th place finish at the 2019 US Pro National Time Trial Championships. Nowadays, Zach spends most of his ride time indoors with NeXT eSport.

UCI Esports World Championships 2022

2022 UCI Cycling Esports World Championships course

Continental qualifiers

ZADA

Standardised equipment

How to watch

Teams

Africa

Americas

Asia

Europe

Oceania

Riders to watch

PowerUps

Course tips