Authored by Sam Holden (Track Coach and Women’s League Commentator)

Under brilliant blue skies - and with blustery winds - our B cats got Rd3 of CWL underway with a typically tactical scratch. 12 cagey laps resulted in an almighty gallop for the line and the first win of the season for VCL hotshot Kitty Belton-Owen, closely followed by Michelle Lewis and Harriet Talbot.

Our C cats were up next and Katie Redgrave began a sensational track racing debut with a commanding win, with newcomer Jed Phoenix taking an impressive second place and Annabel Tang - our current C Cat leader - getting third.

The 15 lap A Cat warm-up scratch was a punchy affair, with Peggy Knox and Cassie Baldi doing their utmost to blow the race apart. Perennial CWL Champion Jasmine Cornelius was on high alert and repeatedly reeled them in and timing her finishing sprint to perfection for the win. LVYCC superstar Eloise Ward took second and Cassie finished strongly for third.

Next up was our ever-popular match sprint competition, with riders split into seeded pools in which they’d face off against three different riders. With over 50 match sprints in total it was a veritable A-Z of track sprinting tactics, with riders trying all manner of approaches to best their opponents. Yewie Adesida, Cassie Baldi and Eloise Ward remained undefeated in the A category, with Hannah Alton, Emily Malthouse and Annie Rice achieving the same feat in the Bs. A competitive C category saw everyone grab a win, with some fantastic riding for VCL’s Isla Young seeing her take two and her Katie Redgrave all three of their match ups.

The back straight team took an early lead in the B Category block pursuit and, despite a late rally by the home straight, had victory assured as they headed into the final lap to contest the points. Millie Wallis - riding an incredible track debut - took the win ahead of Harriet Talbot (cementing her place atop the B leaderboard) and Maisie Wright, continuing her fantastic form.

The A Cat Block Pursuit was neck and neck for the first four or five laps before the home straight team pulled out a significant lead. Some confusion around the finishing lap had them sprinting twice and it was Peggy Knox, Thea Smith and Estenfania Hurtado who took the top three spots second time around.

It was an English Pursuit for the C cats and again it was a tight affair coming into the final lap, with backstraight’s Isla Young and Vanessa Strydom having proved more than a match for Pip Marshall-Waterfield (another rider having a fantastic CWl debut) and Annabel Tang in the home straight. But a valiant effort by Jed Phoenix wasn’t enough to outdo the flying Katie Redgrave who drove the back straight team to victory.

Last up we had the Unknown Distance; a scratch race where riders don’t know how long they’ve got until the bell rings for the final lap. Some early attacks from Brixton legend Mon Zamojska - hopeful of a short race - came to nothing and when the bell finally came it was DPCC’s Holly Jones who took the race on. She held the white for a good 250m before getting rolled on the line by Maisie Wright and the Peckham duo of Michelle Lewis and Millie Wallis. The same three riders would take the Round 3 honours, with Maisie on 17pts, Millie on 15 and Michelle on 14.

The C Cats remained in a tight bunch until the prime lap ripped things apart, with Katie Redgrave attacking for the mid-race prize and deciding to solo home for the win and subsequent Round 3 top spot. An excellent second place for Jed Phoenix saw them in second spot overall for round 3 and Annabel Tang did enough for third sport, thereby retaining her overall C Cat advantage.

The final race of the night fell to our A cat riders and it was Peggy Know, Cassie Baldi, Sophie Edwards and Katherine Fodor who looked to animate the race and take advantage of Jasmine and Eloise marking each other. The race repeatedly split, but with the front group being too large to be cohesive it ultimately came back together as the bell went after roughly 16 laps. Cassie timed her final effort to perfection, just managing to hold off a late challenge from Eloise and Jasmine, with the same three riders sharing the Round 3 podium, with 160pts each and Jasmine taking a 200pt advantage over her nearest competitor into Round 4 on July 12th. See you then!

Condor Women’s league Round 3 – Race report

2025 Track Racing Season