Peter Stetina on the increasing popularity of gravel racing: "Road pros are realising that this isn’t just a retirement programme"
Gravel
Gravel racing in the US is continuously becoming larger and larger to the point where there have been some 700 gravel events in the North Americal country alone. This inevitably brings a certain level of professionalisation of the disciplinem, which is something one of the pioneers of gravel racing, Peter Stetina, only welcomes.
"There are so many different ways to paint things but gravel is in a really interesting space right now," Stetina tells GCN. "I don’t think gravel has lost what made it special but there’s certainly been enough money put into it that it’s become extremely professional."
"Now there’s a component of gravel that’s elite-only racing without all the other ingredients that set it apart, so to speak. That’s just a natural progression of the sport and I’ve said in interviews, that it might be partly my fault as one of the first gravel pros, or these big race series starting, or the UCI coming in."
"The road pros are realising that this isn’t just a retirement programme. It’s its own discipline and it’s hard in its own unique way. Kasia Niewiadoma and Mohoric have both been saying this. It’s finding its place professionally and it’s breaking down that barrier in racing that thought that if it wasn’t WorldTour racing then it didn’t matter."
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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parisbound0008-11-2026 - there needs to be space in life for pointless comments!Ketterechts08-11-2026
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