Canadian cyclist Dylan Bibic takes slim lead into final UCI Track Champions League event
Teammate Sarah Van Dam also in contention entering London competition this week
Canadian track cyclists are in the hunt for a pair of titles at the UCI Track Champions League's final stop of the season in London this week.
Dylan Bibic, of Mississauga, Ont., last year's overall men's winner, is atop the endurance standings with a nine-point lead over Danish rival Tobias Aagaard Hansen.
Victoria's Sarah Van Dam is looking for her first league title and sits in second place, 27 points behind American Katie Archibald, before the final two rounds at Lee Valley VeloPark.
The first of two men's and women's races will be contested Friday at 2 p.m. ET and wrap up Saturday at 12:30 p.m. in the Grand Finale when over 6,000 fans will fill the velodrome built for the 2012 Olympics. Competition will be live streamed both days on CBCSports.ca, CBC Gem, and the CBC Sports app.
A week ago, Bibic extended his series lead, winning the elimination race in Apeldoorn, Netherlands, and finishing second to Hansen in the scratch.
"The elimination was probably one of the most competitive [races]. Tobias is a really good rival. We push the best out of each other," Bibic was quoted as saying in a story posted to the league website.
"It's going to be competitive [in London]. I'll just keep racing for the win, keep trying to win every race."
In each lap of an endurance race, the last rider must exit the competition as determined by the rear wheel. The final two athletes sprint for first place.
Scratch is the simplest of endurance faces, with 18 riders battling over a set distance and the first across the line wins.
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2023 world silver medal
Bibic has impressed since winning scratch race gold in 2022 to become Canada's first world champion in a men's endurance event.
In 2023, he won five Pan American Track Cycling medals and also claimed silver in men's elimination at the world championships in Scotland.
The 21-year-old cyclist began this season with his first career victories on the UCI Nations Cup circuit, taking omnium and elimination races in February in Adelaide, Australia. Two months later, Bibic reached the finish first in elimination at his home Nations Cup in Milton, Ont., before making his Olympic debut in Paris.
Van Dam, 23, made her Olympic debut four months ago and, like Bibic, did not medal.
But she also had success in Apeldoorn last week, finishing first in the women's scratch race and moving to second spot in the endurance standings.
WATCH | Van Dam moves to 2nd in UCI Track Champions League standings:
Van Dam made a third appearance at the world championships last year and raced in three events with a best finish of seventh in elimination. She also debuted in road racing at the event, placing 46th.
In her 2021 worlds debut, Van Dam was part of Canada's entry in women's team pursuit that was fourth.
The following year, she collected six medals at the Pan Am championships, including gold in team pursuit.
Van Dam is transitioning to a balance of road and track racing. She has plans to train with a German-based team in 2025 while looking ahead to the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.
"[The Olympics will] be close to home and an exciting opportunity," Van Dam, who started competitive cycling at age 11, told CBC Sports recently. "I hope to be in top form there and earn a medal for Canada."
