Down Under Cycling Academy

On another note… we’ve been pretty busy organising the “departure” of one of our pupils, Kyra Marett — and what a departure it has been! 🥹🚀

Kyra earned the incredible opportunity to join the UCI Continental Team UCI World Cycling Centre as a stagiaire, and yesterday she lined up at the Giro di Toscana Giro della Toscana for the first time in her new colours.

And what a debut! 🔥
She recorded the best time for her new team, finishing 12th overall and showing once again just how much potential she has.

But Kyra’s story is about much more than results.

When she started cycling, she started milking cows early in the morning before school and later on in the night, to help afford her bike and pay for her training and racing. That says everything about the commitment, motivation and determination she has always put into chasing her dream. 🐄🚲❤️

She joined us last year, and from that moment we’ve watched her grow, develop and push herself to another level — also by following the guidance and advice of our coach Georgios-Athena Varverakis-Sideraki.

Her progress has been incredible. In January, she earned the New Zealand National Elite title in the criterium, then spent a few months racing in the USA before returning to our project. It didn’t take long before her hard work and potential were recognised, and she was selected to step up and race at a higher level.

From milking cows to racing at the highest level of the sport — what a journey. And we have a feeling this is only the beginning. 🚀

We couldn’t be prouder to have played a small part in Kyra’s development and to have been there for this chapter of her journey.

This is exactly why we exist.
To help motivated young riders believe in their potential, develop their talent, and create opportunities to take the next step.

Go Kyra!!! 🇳🇿❤️🚀
We’ll be cheering you on every kilometre of the way!

🏁 14th GP Industria e Commercio – Osio Sotto | 5 August 2026

A fast and demanding day of racing at the 14th GP Industria e Commercio in Osio Sotto, with our full team lining up ready for an aggressive race.

Our team:

* 🇦🇺 Kyle Gibbs
* 🇦🇺 Kealy Kitkevics
* 🇭🇰 Charlie Volavka
* 🇦🇺 Harrison Blackburn
* 🇦🇺 Harry Schoff
* 🇮🇱 Yair Tobul
* 🇳🇿 Cooper Johnson
* 🇳🇿 Dylan Rawson
* 🇦🇺 Angus Haggerty

The race was very fast from the start, with an 8-rider breakaway managing to gain some distance on the bunch. As the race entered the final laps, Kyle made his move, attacking the bunch and taking another rider with him.

The pair pushed on to contest the Top 10, with Kyle fighting all the way to the finish and securing an excellent 10th place. 💪🔥

A great result and, most importantly, a strong display of team spirit, commitment and fighting attitude. Huge congratulations to Kyle and the whole team for their work and determination throughout the race! 👏👏

10th today — and now we’re even hungrier for the next ones! 🚴‍♂️💨🔥

Well done, team! On to the next!

50th Gran Premio Sportivi di Poggiana 1.2 UCI yesterday! 🇮🇹

The learning curve is steep for the boys! Charlie Volavka ventured out on an attack during the first flat laps, while our climbers courageously battled it out in an incredibly strong field.

Dylan Rawson was pulled in the very last kilometres while riding with his group for a potential top-30 finish 😫 Disappointing, but we’re proud of the progress and improvements the boys are showing! 💪

Soooo many races with all our groups, that we have zero time to post!

We’ll have to expand the team soon with a media manager 😮‍💨😅

- 2/7 UCI Città di Brescia
- 5/7 ✅✅✅Triple race day for the U23 & U19: Trofeo Valli Aretine Elite and UCI 1.2 Giro del Medio Brenta for the U23+2nd Trofeo Terra dei Forti U19!
9/7 ✅Trofeo Rancilio where in the breakaway, 15th at the finish!
10/7 ✅first race with the women’s camp, for now we only have & .morley , but maaan, they made sure to be noticed in the race being protagonists with late attacks before the sprint!
11/7 ✅85th Giro delle due Provincie Elite where & .ibbs were 21st & 23rd 😍
Finally, ✅today we took part with
In the 67th Trofeo Piva in Treviso!

🔥 🥵 Thanks to the boys for putting in the hard work and all their grit and motivation, but also a

**🚨🚨🚨HUGE SHOUTOUT to all our staff for a huge Tour de Force!!!!!!! P.A.S.S.I.O.N. ❤️‍🔥 is what moves us!!! 🚨🚨🚨** .filippo 🙏🏼

The final weekends of camp often bring everything together, and this one was no exception. After two months of hard work, learning, and plenty of great memories, our U19 group wrapped up camp with two exciting days of racing.

On Saturday’s 54 Coppa Fratelli Granzotto was once again active at the front, making the race hard. Will Banner then finished it in a strong 7th place. also delivered a solid performance, crossing the line in 12th place! 📈

Sunday the Scandolara-Pianezze race saw another aggressive ride from Will , who fought his way to the breakaway of the day, while impressed with a top-20 finish on a challenging course featuring the famous Pianezze climb.

The results are very encouraging, but what makes us even prouder is the progress this group has made over the past two months. They’ve learned, grown, supported each other, and raced with courage right to the very end of camp.

A fantastic way to finish this chapter—we’re excited to see what’s next for each of these riders! Thanks for the trust boys, and hopefully see you soon around the 🗺️!

At DUCA, athlete development goes far beyond training sessions and race results.

We are proud to offer our athletes exclusive educational opportunities designed to help them become better cyclists, healthier athletes, and more informed individuals.

Our next webinar will feature Dr Rossella Ratto — former professional cyclist 🚴🏼‍♀️, World Championship medallist 🌈🥉, European Champion 🌟, and now sports nutritionist 🥗 🍗— who will share her expertise on one of the most important performance factors in cycling: nutrition.

From race fueling and recovery strategies to supplements, weight management, sleep, and training-specific nutrition, this session will provide practical knowledge that athletes can immediately apply to their sporting careers 🚴🏼‍♀️ 🏃 ⚽️ 🏀 ⛷️

Initiatives like this reflect what DUCA is all about: combining high-performance sport with education, mentorship, and personal growth 📈

This webinar is exclusively available to DUCA athletes.

However, we’d love to hear from the cycling community:

Would you be interested in future webinars, workshops, or educational sessions open to the public?

Let us know in the comments or send us a message. Your feedback will help shape future initiatives.

AthleteDevelopment FutureChampions CyclingPerformance WomenInCycling

Another busy and valuable weekend of racing for our athletes, with plenty of lessons learned and experiences gained along the way.

On Saturday, our U19 squad lined up at the 2° Gran Premio Città del Mandorlato, while our U23 riders took on the challenging 68° Gran Premio Roncolevà. Sunday saw our U23 team back in action at the prestigious Coppa della Pace UCI 1.2 .

While the results sheet may not reflect the effort and commitment shown by our riders, weekends like these are an important part of the development process. Every race is an opportunity to learn, improve, and grow as athletes and teammates. We saw great teamwork, determination, and a positive attitude throughout the weekend, all of which will help us continue moving forward.

A special mention goes to , who unfortunately crashed in the final kilometres of the U19 race on Saturday. We wish him a speedy recovery and look forward to seeing him back racing soon.

Thank you to all our riders, staff, supporters, and families for another weekend of hard work, learning, and shared memories. The journey continues, and we’re excited for the next opportunity to improve together.

U19Cycling U23Cycling CoppaDellaPace GranPremioRoncoleva GranPremioCittàDelMandorlato

Big weekend the last one for the DUCA U19 Men’s Team 🇦🇺🔥

Saturday at Vittorio Veneto – Cansiglio, the boys raced aggressively all day with & .banner_ getting into strong breakaways. finished it off with a strong ride on the final climb to take a top-20 result 💪

Sunday at GP Sportivi San Martino in Treviso, bad luck hit with Will and ._ritchie crashing in the final kilometers, but both fought back to the bunch. then stepped up with a super strong sprint against some of the biggest teams in the race to finish 12th 👏

These weekend the U19s take a break from racing for performance testing with UAE World Tour coach @ studio, precious days to do some hard work on the bike and a chance to watch Stage 18 of the Giro d’Italia yesterday 🇮🇹

The group is growing every week, learning the dynamics of racing together, and the results are starting to come.

The U23 start their camp tomorrow in Tuscany at the Classic « 70th Giro del Monalbano »!

Let’s Go boys!!! 🔥

Third race completed for our junior’s group at the Gran Premio di San Michele 🇮🇹🚴‍♂️

A demanding day out with 116 km and 1,900 meters of climbing on a very technical and challenging course, featuring tough climbs and technical descents that tested the riders from start to finish.

Unfortunately, luck wasn’t fully on our side this time.

was involved in a crash early on but showed determination to fight his way back to the group. Sadly, mechanical problems later forced him to abandon the race.

_ritchie also faced setbacks with a flat tire. Thanks to a huge effort and support from our DS , he made it back to the peloton, but the energy spent chasing took its toll.

banner_ delivered a strong performance holding his place in the main group until the final lap.

While the results didn’t fully reflect the team’s potential, this race brought valuable lessons, resilience, and experience. Every challenge is part of the process, and these athletes are growing stronger, more confident, and even hungrier for the next opportunities ahead.

We keep building. We keep learning. We keep pushing forward 💪🏼

Next race for our team 🔜 65o Vittorio Veneto - Cansiglio 23/5.