'More complex to develop a world-class rider than with just data' - Narrowing down 100,000 entrants to two pro contract winners at Zwift Academy finals

The Zwift Academy final has crowned Emily Dixon and Noah Ramsay as its newest professional cyclists, selected from over 100,000 participants across 70 nations. This year's format focused on rigorous testing protocols, adapting from prior training plans to better identify potential elite talent. The competition involved advanced workouts and assessments, making it a more stringent and effective selection process. The event was documented in a GCN series, providing an engaging look at these athletes' journeys from Zwift users to professional cyclists in teams such as Canyon-SRAM and Alpecin-Deceuninck.

"It used to be a very focused training plan for everyone, and then some people who completed it would be identified over the years. We've moved that on, so it's now more of a testing protocol to really lean into the talent ID side of things, which I feel is a better reflection of what the talent ID process should be."

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