Cyclists from the Russian Federation took gold and silver in the team sprint at the European Championships in Cottbus

Ekaterina Evlanova and Victoria Luchina won medals in the team sprint at the European Track Cycling Championships in Germany. This start was special: for the first time in four years, Russian racers were able to compete in a team discipline on the international stage. On July 1, the International Cycling Union (UCI) decided to allow Russian athletes in neutral status to participate in team disciplines.

In the U23 category, Ekaterina Evlanova, along with Yulia Chertikhina and Elizaveta Solozobova, confidently reached the finals, and in the decisive race they beat the German team and won gold. For Ekaterina, the performance was her international debut in this age category and discipline.

"I am very happy that I managed to win gold. Especially to be the first in four years in the team sprint! I no longer believed that I would get to the competition in Cottbus: the visa was issued the day before the start of the team disciplines, so the tickets were taken at the last moment. I flew with three transfers and immediately went to the track from the airport. The road was exhausting, of course, but I am very happy with the result. By tradition, I will sleep in a champion's jersey!", Ekaterina Evlanova shared.

Among the juniors, Victoria Luchina, along with Maria Belyaeva and Veronika Solozobova, also made it to the finals, and in the final race they finished second and became the silver medalists of the European Championship.

"It was a long and difficult preparation for the selection for the European Championship, and I really wanted to get there — this is my first international competition. Overall, I'm happy with my performance. It was exciting to be the first in the team competition, but the result was decent. We will continue to work," Victoria Luchina commented.

The success in the team sprint has set the bar high for further performances by Russian racers at the championship, which runs until July 12.