Zwift Academy Road: Maud Oudeman and Alex Bogna Land Pro Contracts

Following a week of finals in Mallorca (Spain), Zwift, the global online fitness platform, has unveiled the winners of the 2021 Zwift Academy. Maud Oudeman (NL) and Alex Bogna (AU) both secured professional cycling contracts with CANYON//SRAM Racing and Alpecin-Fenix respectively, starting January 1, 2022.

Source: Press Release

In 2021, Zwift Academy Road recorded a record participation. 150,000 Zwifters embarked on the now famous talent identification program. While most of them enjoyed the structured training sessions and saw notable improvements between the beginning and end of the program, for some participants, the Zwift Academy was an opportunity to get a taste of their dream of becoming a professional cyclist by following in the footsteps of Ella Harris, Jay Vine or Neve Bradbury, previous winners of the program.

Dutch rider Maud Oudeman is the big winner of the 2021 Zwift Academy. She excelled in all the tasks assigned to her during the week and won the “Rider of the Day” title several times, while proving very popular with her new CANYON//SRAM Racing teammates.

“I can’t believe it,” says Maud Oudeman. “The week was both fantastic and really tough. I was so thrilled to make the finals and I can’t believe my dream is coming true. I’m looking forward to racing in CANYON//SRAM Racing colors and really excited to continue learning, improving and helping the team as much as I can next year.”

In the men’s category, Alex Bogna follows in the footsteps of previous Zwift Academy winners by continuing the series of Australian victories initiated by Jay Vine and Neve Bradburry in 2020. Throughout the week, he demonstrated impressive skill and power on Mallorca’s famous climbs. Alex Bogna left nothing to chance in the final Zwift race and broke away to eventually win on the Epic KOM.

“I’m speechless,” says Alex Bogna. “The Zwift Academy is just a fantastic opportunity, when I found out I qualified for the finals, I was so happy. I came with the goal of fully enjoying this week to give myself a chance to win the contract. Honestly, I’m in shock, it’s the opportunity of a lifetime.“