"I completely blew my doors" - Double Olympic champion Katie Archibald rules Britain once again

Six years after her last national track title, Katie Archibald returned to the top step of the podium over the weekend, becoming British national champion once again. The 30-year-old double Olympic champion dominated the women’s points race, securing victory with 47 points in the 80-lap event.

Archibald was joined on the podium by Dannielle Watkinson, who launched a last-ditch solo attack with two laps to go, crossing the line first to move from zero to 10 points, earning the silver medal. Young superstar Cat Ferguson rounded out the podium, claiming bronze after consistently collecting points throughout the race.

Reflecting on her victory, Archibald spoke from the podium about the significance of her return to national competition.

"I’m very happy about a plan well executed. The fact I’ve been away for so long has made me very motivated for the nationals. I’m the person that people want to beat, but it’s still nice to be surrounded by that mentality and take a buoy from being a part of that."

Speaking to Cycling Weekly, Archibald shared her race strategy and how she aimed to position herself early on.

"I wanted to score early because I thought the points spread might be clustered across a few riders," she explained. "I thought, ‘If I attack in the final 30 (laps), then at least if I’m up the road, someone can join me, which is better than them being up the road and me having to join them. Then I completely blew my doors."

She also reflected on a memory from 2018, when her brother John Archibald won the men’s national points race in a similarly demanding solo effort.

"My brother won the national points race in 2018, and similarly was up the road by himself. When someone you love is in agony, you don’t enjoy watching it. I thought, ‘The boy needs his bed.’ That felt very similar."

After battling injuries and setbacks in recent years, Archibald sees this victory as a re-grounding moment in her career. Remember, Archibald was ruled out of last year’s Olympic Games in Paris after a freak accident in her garden. She is now back, and ready to get back to her very best.

"It’s a re-grounding, a rebuild from what, at some point in your career, has been the grassroots of it," she said. "When I’m not racing, it’s been hard to motivate myself, but that feels like a very distant feeling right now, because the weekend’s gone so well."