Belgium move paying off for teenager Backstedt

Zoe Backstedt has won junior world titles in four disciplines on road, track and cyclo-cross

Teenage Welsh cyclist Zoe Backstedt has taken a big step as she embarks on the next stage of her professional career.

It is a major change for such a young rider but it is worth it.

"It makes my preparation for my races so much easier," she told BBC Sport.

"For sure I miss my family, I miss my friends but it's the best thing I can do for my career, and they know that as well."

The move has already paid off, with two top-four finishes in this winter's Cyclocross World Cup campaign - and two silver medals at the Cyclocross World Championship in the Netherlands earlier this month.

Even in her first year above junior category, she was the only rider in the women's U23 field to challenge eventual champion Shirin van Anrooij, who turned 21 on the day of the race.

Zoe crossed the line nearly a minute in front of the third-place finisher.

"I'm just pleased to have held on and been as close as I was for as long as I lasted in that race," Backstedt said.

That was her second success of the weekend, having helped British Cycling to silver in the Team Relay event at the start of the weekend.

She was the only female rider to contest the opening lap of the relay.

"It was just really cool to be the only woman on the start line going full gas into the first corner," she said.

"To be only 30 seconds down at the finish, I was pretty over the moon with that. It was a big gap but not as much as I expected it to be, so I'm pretty happy with it."

Following in the family's professional footsteps

In the relay in Hoogerheide, Zoe provided the platform for her GB team to reach the podium.

She is now hoping to make a similar impact with her EF Education-TIBCO-SVB team in her first full year in the professional ranks.

The season starts on 25 February, with the Omloop het Nieuwsblad from Gent to Ninove in Belgium.

In other words, in what is now her own backyard.

"It's been pretty cool, just learning how to do bills and everything, especially in a foreign language," Zoe said.

"But I've really enjoyed it. I've found myself a nice place, and it's made the cross season a lot nicer for me, having my own place to go back to.

"I can just drive to the service course, [or] go to the race and just come home for the evening and cook for myself."

She is looking at a "packed schedule" of racing through late winter and spring, including the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix - which her father Magnus won back in 2004.

Zoe Backstedt won two golds at the Road Cycling World Championships in September 2022

The Backstedts are a famous cycling family. As well as her father, Zoe's older sister Elynor has been a pro-rider for a couple of years and their mother Megan Hughes competed for Wales at the Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur.

Trackside at Hoogerheide, Megan said watching her daughters compete was "nerve-wracking" but enjoyable.

"[Zoe] loves being out there and racing and getting muddy and all that stuff, and if she's having fun she just races well and it's great to watch.

"Every race that both girls do is a nerve-wracking day for me but [I'm a] proud mum, and just enjoy everything."

On Zoe's move away from home, Megan is realistic.

"She needs to be over here at the moment to do the cyclocross and be with the team, so it's what you've got to do - so we have to deal with it as parents.

"We are close, but in fairness Belgium isn't that far away, six-seven hours, so if there's any problems I'll be there in a heartbeat."

Strong following

Belgium and the Netherlands are the heartland of Cyclocross and the young Welsh woman's burgeoning success has already earned her a strong following among the sport's fans - an interest her move to Belgium will surely only enhance.

"It's pretty cool even just rolling from the bus down to the start line - there's people shouting," Zoe said.

"All around the course, wherever I was, there were people shouting for me, from any country there was always someone shouting my name. It really helped me keep going."

Many were strangers of course, but some of the crowd at Hoogerheide she knew rather better.

"My Mum and my Gran were here - they came to support me which was really nice," she said.

"I could see them shouting for me and they were there at the podium as well. It's so lovely.

"It's not like I'm on the other side of the world. I'm only a few hours' drive away - so it's still possible if I need to go home for some time, I can just drive home, and they can drive out and come and see me."

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Backstedt will be hoping that she does have to return to the UK later in the year, because Scotland is hosting the 2023 UCI World Championships this summer.

For the first time, multiple world championships - thirteen in total, featuring seven disciplines - will take place as part of one huge event, from August 3-13.

Zoe's focus, subject to fitness and selection of course, will likely be on the road - having won both the junior road race and time trial titles in Australia last year.

Those two crowns completed a remarkable 2022 for the young rider, because she had already claimed the cyclo-cross junior world title and the madison junior world crown on the track, with teammate Grace Lister.

After stepping up to the U23 category at Hoogerheide, and reaching the podium yet again, she is already enjoying life at the next level.

"The team relay was amazing, [U23] was amazing, crowds were amazing - it was awesome," she said.

And asked if she felt her move to Belgium was already proving its worth, she had a short and simple answer.

"For sure."