The USA Cycling Foundation Center of Excellence designation is awarded to select programs which meet strict organizational requirements and excel in developing young cyclists. These club teams collectively have over 1,500 youth, junior and U23 member riders. The Center of Excellence program continues to grow in quantity and quality, all contributing to the amazing U.S. talent pool in the junior and U-23 age categories. Funding for the Center of Excellence program is made possible by a generous grant from the Carolan Family Foundation and other generous individual gifts to the USA Cycling Foundation.
Center of Excellence Program Highlights
Lux Development Cycling Team
LUX has had a large number of riders selected to participate in USA Cycling’s National Development program in 2018. Andrew Vollmer finished 5th overall at the 3 days of Axel, a 3 day UCI 2.1 stage race in Holland. Kevin Vermaerke, Riley Sheehan and Quinn Simmons raced Kooigem, a Belgian Cup Race, all making the break, with Kevin winning, Riley 4th and Quinn 12th.
Sean Quinn and Andrew Vollmer raced the Nations Cup race, Jr Course De La Paix representing the US National Team in the Czech Republic. Quinn had 4 top ten finishes with a 4th, two 6th’s and a 10th. He ended up 7th on GC.
Recent Lux alumnus Brandon McNulty was 7th Overall all at UCI World Tour Stage Race, Tour of California. Brandon had a breakout ride on stage 6, where he was 4th in the 195km Mountain stage going from Folsom to South Lake Tahoe - Only 20 years old and riding in the company of Adam Yates, Dani Martinez, Rafal Majka, Tejay van Garderen and Egan Bernal!
“LUX/sideshow Cycling is honored to be included in the group of grant recipients. Center of Excellence status is validation of our efforts to develop this country’s top young athletes.” – Roy Knickman, General Manager, LUX/Sideshow p/b Specialized
Boulder Junior Cycling
"Boulder Junior Cycling is incredibly proud to earn the Center of Excellence designation once again. This is our tenth year with the award, and all the credit goes to our many coaches who work incredibly hard as mentors and teachers for the next generation of cyclists. Junior cycling teams are one of the foundations of our sport. Thanks to USA Cycling for recognizing their efforts and their progress. To ensure the development pipeline is full of future bike racers, we need these programs to thrive.” – Pete Webber, Executive Director of Boulder Junior Cycling
In the 2017-2018 season, Boulder Junior Cycling (BJC) athletes won 3 National Championships and BJC alumni added 6 Collegiate Championships. Since 2006, BJC athletes and alumni have won more than 20 National Championships and 30 silver or bronze medals at National Championships. 150 kids ages 8-18 participate in BJC programs which range from 8 to 20 weeks in length for Road Cycling, Mountain Biking, and Cyclocross.
Star Track
“We love what we do — helping kids discover the joy of track cycling, teaching them the skills they need to become better racers, guiding them to compete at the highest levels. As our founder, Deirdre Murphy Bader, used to say, “It’s like watching kids get their wings.” These are neighborhood kids, many from really underserved communities, and the wonderful recognition and support from USA Cycling is so important to our program as we continue to help them develop.” – Peter Taylor, Co- Executive Director, Star Track Cycling
Recent results for Star Track at the Northeast Regional Jr. Track Championships in Pennsylvania include wins by Sophia Shuhay, Geneway Tang, Enzo Edmonds and Eziel Hernandez. Seven additional Star Track riders earned silver medals. Akira Edmonds, Enzo Edmonds, and Billy Taylor won New York State Champions at the CRCA Bear Mountain Classic, along with three additional silver medalists.
USA Cycling Foundation recognizes the outstanding work of all of these Center of Excellence programs as they continue to grow the model of athlete development in cycling and contribute to the elevated levels of competition and growth of the sport in the United States.
For more information and a complete list of the USA Cycling Foundation Center of Excellence programs, click here.
