World champion Katie Archibald has proved she can more than cut it on the track – and she’s adamant she can do the same on the road as she readies herself to make history.
Archibald has come from relative obscurity to call herself a European and world team pursuit gold medallist in less than a year and will undoubtedly ride at the Commonwealth Games.
For now though the pine of the track is being swapped for the tarmac of the roads with the 20-year-old having been selected on the British team for the inaugural Women’s Tour.
Never before has there been a UCI level stage-race for women in Britain with Archibald to ride five from Oundle to Bury St Edmunds starting today.
And, while she won’t be riding for victory herself, Archibald wants to prove how good she can also be on the road by helping two-time world junior champion Lucy Garner to success.
“I feel confident of making the Commonwealth squad but you’ve always got to be cautious because you never know,” said Archibald.
“I feel like I’m on track with my training but the women’s tour is a pretty big deal, so it’s really great to be a part of that and have the chance to play my part.
“I love being on the track but there is a huge motivation to go there and do well and to help get a result for Lucy Garner.
“That would be massive for us and a really big achievement so that’s what we are looking to do and hopefully we can achieve that.
“All the girls on the tour are probably in similar positions, so we will definitely have a good understanding and hopefully we will do well.”
With the track season having finished with team pursuit gold at the World Championships in Colombia in March, Archibald is only too happy to switch to the road.
However she is under no illusions that repeating the rapid rise she’s taken on the track won’t be so simple on the road with a highly-competitive Women’s Tour planned.
“It’s a good chance for me to get some racing under my belt and to get better on the road and road racing definitely helps to improve my track performances,” she added.
“I’ve been doing a lot of base miles, which is very important, and for now it’s the road race that I’m concentrating on and I just need to make sure I learn about it a little bit better.”
© Sportsbeat 2014