“Feels really good” – West Virginia’s 16-Year-Old Alyssa White to Compete in UCI Cyclocross Championship

Life is about to change for 16-year-old Alyssa White in a few days. She is gearing up to make her debut in professional cycling or cyclocrossing, as it is popularly called. The ambitious teen hails from West Virginia and will get the chance to represent the USA in the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) World Championship Cyclocross.

The competition is slated to start on February 3rd in the Czech Republic and promises to be nothing short of spectacular. Alyssa is part of a group of five athletes that will represent the USA in the women’s junior category. The teenager expressed great joy at the selection and hopes to make an illustrious name for her state and country.

Alyssa White: all set for her debut

Cyclo-cross is a mixture of three different biking disciplines, i.e. road cycling, mountain biking, and steeplechase. Riders often have to get off their bikes, lift them, and travel through the sandy or muddy track, with steep climbs and obstacles. For Alyssa, her tryst with cyclocross, started all because of her family, who follow quite an active lifestyle.

They introduced her to the sport in 2019, and her life changed after that. She instantly fell in love with the sport and about five years later, she is all set to participate in an international cyclocross competition.

Speaking to the media about her selection, she expressed great joy and said, “It definitely feels really good not only to represent U.S.A. but West Virginia especially, there’s been so much support throughout the state.”

Reaching this stage, however, was no cakewalk. There were a lot of sacrifices involved, both from her family and Alyssa herself. With West Virginia not having any official cyclocross tracks, they travelled to Maryland and Virginia in order for her to train. A family of fitness enthusiasts, they used this training period as getaways to bond and spend time together as well.

A family like no other

Alyssa will be part of a group of 60 athletes and will be eyeing to leave an impact in her debut competition. The support of her family throughout her five-year journey is perhaps the main reason where she is today. She undergoes schooling online at her parents’ office in order to accommodate her extensive schedule. It includes 10-15 hours per week of running, yoga, cycling and strength training.

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“Being in West Virginia, we have a lot of mountain bike racing…And then from there we’re like, you know what, that is during the spring and the summer it’d be nice if we can do something in the fall kind of through the winter to just keep you active and to keep you trained,” said her mother Tonya White.

With her heart set on cyclocross as a career, Alyssa hopes to make a mark in the sport and represent her country at the Olympics. Cyclocross officials have repeatedly sent petitions for the sports inclusion in the 2030 Winter Olympics. To reach the stage of the Olympics would be a dream come true. But first comes the championship next week, where she will lock horns with likes of Double off-road World Champion Isabella Holmgren.

The 16-year-old is on the cusp of making a historic debut and while the nerves will naturally exist, she definitely will cherish the moment forever, come February 3rd.

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