Mandy Marquardt Reflects on 2021 Track World Championships

Team Novo Nordisk’s Mandy Marquardt ended her 2021 racing season at the UCI Track Cycling World Championships presented by Tissot at the Vélodrome Couvert Régional Jean-Stablinski in Roubaix, France on October 20-24. 

“I am always grateful to represent my country at the World Championships and be back together with my USA Cycling teammates, coaches, and staff,” Marquardt, the reigning Sprint and Keirin National Champion stated.

“When you put so much time and effort into something and come up short, I can’t even begin to describe how much that hurts. Of course, these times have been difficult for everyone,” added Marquardt who finished 18th in the Women’s Sprint and 17th in the Women’s Keirin. 

Marquardt’s last two events on an indoor track took place in March 2020 at the World Championships in Berlin, Germany, and in May 2021 at the UCI Track Nations Cup in Hong Kong.

“This was my third major international competition and third time spent on an indoor 250-meter velodrome since March 2020. My indoor track legs and confidence to execute just never came around. As I reflect on 2019, it was a year of consistent racing and time spent on the indoor velodrome, which resulted in a top 10 overall finish in the UCI Track World Cup standings.”

This unprecedented and chaotic racing season ended with a change in venue for the World Championships. Originally scheduled to be held in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, the UCI announced in June that the event would be moved to a different venue. In August, Roubaix was finalized as the new venue and the schedule was pushed back one week later in October.

“Preparation and consistency build confidence,” concluded Marquardt.  “I’m hopeful 2022 will bring more opportunities and even more racing.”

Before the Nations Cup, Marquardt flew to Poland from her home in Allentown, PA, to train alongside her Team Novo Nordisk teammate Mateusz Rudyk and the Polish track team. 

Full results here.