For the eighth year, the Zwift Academy talent identification and training program, in partnership with Alpecin-Deceuninck and CANYON//SRAM, has awarded professional contracts to two young riders.
South Africa’s Maddie Le Roux will join CANYON//SRAM Generation and Germany’s Louis Kitzki will join the Alpecin-Deceuninck Development Team. These two talented riders will add their names to a list of Zwift Academy alumni, including Neve Bradbury and Jay Vine.
A release from Zwift noted that… ‘Maddie and Louis set themselves apart from more than 108,000 Zwifters who participated in the 2023 Zwift Academy. They were among the finalists – three women and three men – who were invited to their respective team camps for finals in Denia.’
At the finals in Denia, on the Mediterranean coast of eastern Spain, all finalists participated in challenges and races on the road as well as a Zwift race. Finalists met with coaches and team staff as well as joined the group rides with athletes from their potential future teams.
Maddie Le Roux distinguished herself by having strong power numbers and high-level race experience. Adam Szabó, Team Director at CANYON//SRAM Generation, said “Maddie excelled in many of the challenges but where she stood out from all the finalists was supporting her designated leaders during the Zwift race.
“This moment was a turning point in the week, and we were sure this was what we were looking for in our team. We’re excited to welcome her to the team.”
Maddie Le Roux said “I’m excited to finally be able to share the news, it still feels unbelievable, to be honest, but I’m sure it’ll sink in soon. It’s been a whirlwind since coming back from finals, but I am looking forward to joining the team in Europe and getting the season started.”
As the youngest of the Zwift Academy finalists, Louis Kitzki impressed the coaching staff at the finals to showcase his development potential.
Kristof de Kegel, Performance Manager at Alpecin-Deceuninck, said “This edition, the finalists were the closest ever to compare on a physical level. Louis has the combination of a young age with the belief and awareness that his ‘weak points’ are only working points, which gave him the advantage over the other finalists. All three [male finalists] had massive physical capacities, but Louis in our opinion the most workable profile in the long term.”
Louis Kitzki said “The Zwift Academy Finals was such a unique experience riding with the team and getting to spend that time with the coaches, it is such a great way to really test if you can handle the professional cycling lifestyle.
“I am so excited to join the Alpecin-Deceuninck development team for the coming season, to learn from some of the world’s best cyclists, and hopefully follow in [Zwift Academy 2022 winner] Luca Vergallito’s footsteps.”
Eurosport has been airing a four-episode series covering the Zwift Academy finals. The winners were unveiled at the end of the final episode on February 23rd. The series will also be available globally on the Eurosport YouTube Channel, with each episode published immediately after the broadcast episodes.
