Indian cyclist Esow Alben breaks into top 10 in World rankings

Indian cyclist Esow Alben breaks into top 10 in World rankings

Esow Alben

Yet another prodigy has put India on the global sporting map and this time around it is a 20-year-old cyclist from Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Esow Alben has scripted history as she broke into the top 10 of the keirin World rankings. While Esow has been a regular feature in the Indian cycling circuit, he discovered his love for sports in rowing.

Esow switched to cycling to enjoy the thrill of overtaking his fellow cyclists and there has been no stopping him. The teenage sensation announced himself on the global stage with a gold medal in a team sprint event at the 2019 UCI Junior World Championships in Germany. It was India’s maiden medal at the World Championships.

Esow Alben followed it up with a silver in the men’s individual sprint, and bronze in his favoured keirin event putting Indian cycling in the international spotlight. Following the sensational performance, he was invited to the prestigious Berlin Sechstagerennen (Six-Day) event. Esow stunned everyone as he not only held his ground with the elite cyclists but won the keirin on a penultimate day ahead of the likes of Olympic silver medalist Maximilian Levy of Germany.

Spearheading the rise of Indian cycling

Esow Alben
Esow Alben

Esow first shot into prominence at the 2015 Senior National Cycling Championship at Trivandrum, as he won two junior silver medals, one in the scratch race and another in team trial. The exciting talents of Esow caught the eye of the selectors and he was inducted into the National Cycling Academy and the rest is history.

Six years down the lane, Esow Alben has broken into the top ten of the keirin paying off the trust of the selectors in him. The Indian prodigy is ranked tenth with 1000 points to his name. The latest update places him only two places below the Tokyo Olympics silver medalist Mohammed Azizulhasni Awang.

It is interesting to note that Esow is placed much higher than the gold and bronze medallists at Tokyo 2020. Great Britain’s Jason Kenny, who took home the gold medal from Tokyo is ranked 38th with mere 592 points. This puts the Olympic champion 18 places adrift the Indian. Bronze medalist Harrie Lavreysen is 22 on the rankings, 12 places below Alben.

Also read: What is the Secret Behind the Rise of China in Swimming at Tokyo Olympics?

Why did Esow Alben didn’t qualify for the Tokyo Olympics?

Esow Alben
Esow Alben

Having known the rankings of the Tokyo Olympics medalists, you might be wondering, why did Esow Alben didn’t feature at the Games despite ranking 11 in the world ahead of the event. The answer to this lies in the qualification rule of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) and the rankings of the countries.

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According to UCI qualification protocols, the top eight nations in the rankings will be awarded two quotas while the next seven countries will have one quota each for the quadrennial event. The fact that India is ranked 29th ahead of the Games(32nd now) meant there was no chance for an Indian cyclist to qualify for the event.

But the way, Esow and Co. have been improving and the fact that prodigious cyclist has taken to the senior circuit like fish to water, India might have a shot of qualifying for the 2024 Paris Olympics. If Esow is able to continue at his current rate of progression, India may just quietly be starting to believe that their first cycling Olympic medallist is just around the bend.

Also read: Which country won the most medals in Judo at Tokyo Olympics 2020?