Nine NSWIS Podium Finishes at 2025 Aus Cycling Track Nationals

New South Wales Institute of Sport (NSWIS) athletes displayed exceptional skill to claim numerous podium finishes and second place overall at the 2025 Aus Cycling Track Nationals in Brisbane. 

As one of the first competitions of the season, the Nationals provided cyclists the opportunity to test early-season form, refine processes, and build momentum ahead of more major events such as the world championships in October, and ultimately, the 2028 Los Angeles (LA) Olympic and Paralympic Games. 

For NSWIS scholarship holder and Paralympian Gordon Allan, the event not only marked a return to racing, but a chance to experiment and reset his approach.  

“[My approach was] not so much focusing on the results on the bike but dialing back my process – everything that I need to be prepared as I approach the start line – and doing new things that I might want to test out and have learnt since Paris [2024 Paralympic Games],” he explained, after finishing a training session at the NSWIS HQ’s gymnasium. 

“Performance-wise, I still want to go well and perform, but there’s a lot more of the other side of things as well with racing.” 

The 27-year-old made a strong statement on the track, claiming five medals: 

• Gold for Para Men C2 Men Scratch Final 

• Gold for Para Sprint Men C2 Final 

• Gold for the C2 Men 1000m time trial 

• Silver for Para Men C2 Men Individual Pursuit Final 

• Silver for Para Men C2 Elimination

Allan trialed new positional work, tapering strategies, and adjusted training rhythms – utilising the time he has on the runway of LA 2028 to refine his performance model early. 

“Given it’s another four years until LA, this is the time where you want to try and refine things and set yourself up long-term so that you’re going well in the final two years [of your Olympic training cycle],” he said. 

This season has also marked a shift in Allan’s career trajectory, as he prepares to race in the Australian road national team for the first time later this month at a Road World Cup in Belgium. 

“One of the things I wanted to do post-Paris, was try and transition from just being a track athlete to do some more road events,” he shared. 

“This will be my first time in the road national team, which is exciting. I’m thankful for the opportunity but also excited to see where I’m at there and at that sort of level.” 

Allan’s results were part of a broader wave of success for NSWIS, with nine senior athletes and a host of juniors achieving podium finishes across events: 

• Danny Barber took gold in the elite men’s keirin, silver in the men’s team sprint and bronze in the sprint.
• Xavier Bland joined Barber in winning silver in men’s team Sprint.
• Keira Will secured gold in the elite women’s scratch final and bronze in the points race.
• Kurt Eather claimed a gold in the men’s elimination, silver for the team pursuit and bronze for the elite men’s scratch race.
• Nicole Duncan returned home with silver for the elite women’s points race, and bronze medals for the elite women’s time trial, women’s individual pursuit and the elimination final
• Noah Mason won silver in the elite men’s team sprint
• Liliya Tatarinoff and Maya Dillon took bronze in the elite women’s team sprint.

With the domestic season underway and international events on the horizon, the 2025 Nationals signalled not just strong results, but strong intent from NSWIS riders as they head into a critical Olympic and Paralympic cycle. 

Story: Rachel Tingey, NSWIS

Photos: Aus Cycling