Velon, the business group that represents a chunk of the WorldTour, has announced the launch of “cycling’s first fan universe”, an online platform named Road Code.
The platform, created in collaboration with the 10 Velon teams including Ineos Grenadiers, Bora-Hangrohe, Soudal-QuickStep, UAE Team Emirates, and Jumbo-Visma, is proposed as an alternative to more traditional, centralised social media channels.
Road Code will be built on the Hedera public network which, after translating the tech jargon, appears to be a cryptocurrency/blockchain-related venture – described by Velon as a Web3 universe.
The “next generation of platform” will offer Velon’s usual on-bike footage and live data already familiar to cycling fans as well as a new ranking system and, yes, “digital collectibles and team access tokens, all stored securely in a personal digital vault,” according to the press release issued by Velon.
There will also be a fantasy cycling game based on the new ranking system, which is set to come with prizes throughout the year and “premium features” including said digital collectibles. It’s unclear exactly what sort of access the ‘team access tokens’ will offer.
The new ranking system is based on head-to-head results rather than the allocation of points per result like the UCI’s rider, team and country rankings.
“This approach recognises the strength of your opponents, rather than just the outcome of the event,” Velon say, adding that a Strava-like feature will be available at some point in the future.
“In time, amateur riders will be able to directly compare their hard-earned performances with those of the top riders in the sport, providing valuable insight and motivation for continued improvement.”
In addition to the teams listed above, the five other teams which make up Velon – EF Education-EasyPost, Intermarché-Circus-Wanty, Team DSM, Trek-Segafredo, and Lotto-Dstny – are also part of the project.
“The community of road cycling fans is a great one and I hope that they’ll be very happy with Road Code giving them a new place to enjoy the racing,” said Bora-Hansgrohe sprinter Sam Bennett. “I’m looking forward to seeing the fans brought closer to the action and the teams on this unique platform.”
Team DSM climber Romain Bardet added, “It’s cool that simply by engaging on Road Code, fans contribute and can earn access to exclusive assets, prizes and offers” while several bosses of the teams involved also voiced their approval of the venture.
Road Code, which…
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