Joss Lowdon has broken the women’s UCI Hour Record on Thursday. The British rider admitted she may try again to see if she could push it even further.
- Joss Lowden, 33 covered a distance of 48.405 kilometers at the Grenchen velodrome in Switzerland to breeze past the mark of 48.007km set by Vittoria Bussi in 2018.
- Lowden was on the required pace virtually throughout her attempt, riding with confidence after unofficially breaking the record in training earlier in the year.
- Lowden’s distance not only broke Bussi’s official record, but also the women’s “absolute record” of 48.159km covered by Jeannie Longo in 1996 using an aerodynamic position banned by the UCI.
- But there are several factors about Lowden’s attempt to suggest she could have gone even further. Both Longo and Bussi set their times at altitude in Aguascalientes, Mexico, whereas Lowden was close to sea level in Grenchen.
- Furthermore, Lowden, who rides on the road for Drops Le Col, is not a track specialist and competed in three events at last week’s UCI Road World Championships in Flanders – hardly a conventional build-up.
She also has been preparing for her shot at history with a partner and aerodynamicist Dan Bigham a multiple British national champion on the track she admitted her lack of experience in a velodrome cost her.
