U.S. Paralympics Track Cycling Open To Determine Roster Spots For World Championships Team

Samantha Bosco, who has won 21 track and road cycling medals in eight world championships appearances, and Joe Berenyi, a three-time Paralympian who has also appeared in eight world championships, are among the cyclists who’ll compete for spots on the 2024 world team at the U.S. Paralympics Track Cycling Open this weekend in Carson, California.

The two-day competition, set for Feb. 10 and 11 at the VELO Sports Center in Carson, will determine a minimum of nine spots on the world team. The roster could expand to 12 athletes if three additional discretionary spots are awarded by U.S. Paralympics Cycling officials.

Of the 10 riders and two pilots who competed in the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships, the only one not returning is Chris Murphy, a two-time Paralympian who retired from competitive cycling after winning a world silver medal in Glasgow, Scotland.

The 2024 UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships will be held March 20-24 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The competition in Carson is also the first step toward the Paralympic Games Paris 2024.

“We’re excited about it,” said Ian Lawless, director of U.S. Paralympics Cycling. “We’re excited to see some athletes who don’t have that many opportunities to race because track has so few events. I’m just as excited to see how everybody has been preparing and how they’ll fare on the first step toward Paris.”

Bosco, who qualified for her second Paralympics in 2021 but missed the Games due to injury, has been on a tear in recent years. She won three medals in track cycling at the 2023 world championships in addition to winning gold medals in both road competitions the last two years. She’ll compete in the WC4 class alongside two-time Paralympian Shawn Morelli, a 16-time world medalist and 12-time champion.

Joining the race for a spot on the world team is Clara Brown, a 2020 Paralympian and 11-time world championships medalist who did not compete on the track in 2023 and instead focused on road competition. She won three medals on the track at the 2022 world championships.

“It’ll be interesting to see Clara back on the track,” Lawless said.

Bosco, Morelli and Brown are among those who are trying to make the Paralympic team in both track and road.

The competition in Carson includes a 1-kilometer time trial for the men and 500 meters for the women. Cyclists will also compete in scratch races, a 200-meter fly and team sprints.

Five men’s spots on the world team and four women’s sports will be determined by performances in that competition and a rankings list, Lawless said.

“From there, we’re just looking to see how everyone does here at the first track event of the year,” he said, “and how everyone’s prepared and how they’re racing on the 250-meter track in LA to see their potential for performance in Rio.”

In addition to Berenyi, entrants in the men’s classes includes Aaron Keith, a 2020 Paralympic silver medalist and 12-time world medalist in MC2; John Terrell, a two-time world medalist in the MC4 class; and Bryan Larsen, a two-time world team member who is one of four entered in the MC5 class. Berenyi, who competes in MC3, has won 16 world medals and four Paralympic medals.

The women’s WC2 class includes Allison Jones, an eight-time Paralympian and eight-time medalist in two sports. She recently won a pair of medals in a road world cup in January in Adelaide, Australia.

Jennifer Schuble, a five-time Paralympic medalist and 18-time world medalist, and Katie Walker, a two-time world team member, are among three entrants in WC5.

The tandem combination of Hannah Chadwick and pilot Skyler Espinoza, who won a bronze medal in their world championships debut last year and added a gold medal in the 2023 Parapan American Games in Chile, is one of two women’s teams.

Michael Stephens and pilot Joe Christiansen, who won a gold medal at the Parapan Am Games, is one of three men’s teams.

Those who are named to the world team will be invited to stay in Carson for an optional training camp Feb. 12-17. The team will reunite for another training camp in Rio one week before the world championships begin March 20.

Paul D. Bowker has been writing about Olympic sports since 1996, when he was an assistant bureau chief in Atlanta. He is a freelance contributor to USParaCycling.org on behalf of Red Line Editorial, Inc.