The best male graver in the U.S. is headed to the biggest one-day race for professional road cyclists.

heads to the in Wollongong, Australia this week as one of the most anticipated riders to watch in the men鈥檚 road race.

Swenson was a surprise call-up for Team USA to participate in the road race, even though he has been a dominant presence in the off-road scene this year. This year alone he has won the Sea Otter Classic mountain-bike race, Utah鈥檚 Crusher in the Tushar gravel event, as well as the U.S. national cross-country mountain-bike championships.

He was also a close second at Unbound Gravel, which he lost in a sprint to Dutch road cyclist Ivar Slik. In August, Swenson won the Leadville Trail 100 MTB and the 145-mile SBT GRVL events on back-to-back days.

USA Cycling, the sport鈥檚 national governing body, has never chosen a rider to represent the country at the UCI world road cycling championships based on his or her success in off-road events like gravel and mountain biking. Historically, the organization has chosen athletes for the road world championships based on their results from pro road races. Brendan Quirk, USA Cycling鈥檚 CEO, told聽VeloNews that a combination of scheduling problems and injuries to other American road racers opened the door for Swenson to join the team. Coaches with USA Cycling studied Swenson鈥檚 power data and decided to extend an invitation to him.

鈥淲e know he has a WorldTour engine, we know he鈥檚 not intimidated by anything or anyone. And we know that the most incredible phenomenon going on in road right now is crossover riders diving in from other disciplines,鈥� Quirk said. 鈥淭his is an amazing opportunity for Keegan to show how talented he really is.鈥�

Swenson, 28, believes he has the legs and lungs to succeed in the 165-mile road race, held this coming Sunday, September 25. Swenson says it鈥檚 confirmation that the level of competition in the U.S. gravel scene is the best of any discipline in the country right now.

鈥淭here鈥檚 more talent in gravel right now and numbers with Strava are pretty transparent. Everyone can see what we鈥檙e doing and see that the numbers we鈥檙e doing aren鈥檛 that far off what they鈥檙e doing in the WorldTour,鈥� Swenson said. 鈥淭hey can see if a rider has the motor, so it鈥檚 just about whether they can do it on the road as well.鈥�

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Indeed, the depth in gravel has grown massively in the last few years, with European road riders and high-profile domestic riders raising the standards of competition. Racing infrastructure and organization have also come on leaps and bounds, and in many ways, Swenson personifies the importance of gravel and off-road racing when it comes to finding talent and transferring it to the road.

鈥淚t鈥檚 super cool how in the U.S. the gravel scene has really developed in the last couple of years. I think, right now, it鈥檚 the most competitive form of racing in North America,鈥� he said.

鈥淭here are cross country races that are pretty big but in general I think that the gravel races have deeper talent and the demands of gravel racing is similar to road racing. Steamboat was more or less a road race with a fair bit of gravel. I raced small tires and it was bunch racing, so I think that simulates close to road racing, and there鈥檚 not a huge amount of racing in the U.S. right now.鈥�

Road racing in the U.S. has taken a significant hit in recent years. Major events like the Amgen Tour of California, Tour of Utah, and Colorado Classic have disappeared from the calendar, and professional road teams have folded, leaving just a small crop of stage races, the Maryland Cycling Classic and a criterium scene.

Meanwhile, gravel cycling has surged in popularity, and it has attracted top riders from road cycling and mountain biking as well. USA Cycling has begun to take notice, even thought many of the gravel events are not sanctioned by the governing body.

Swenson鈥檚 experience in pro road cycling is limited, and Arizona鈥檚 Valley of the Sun road race as the biggest road event he鈥檚 participated in.聽 The road race at worlds will signify a huge step up in terms of quality, but it鈥檚 the tactical and positional sides where Swenson sees his biggest areas of improvement.

鈥淚 think it would be just racing in the bunch. We do that in gravel but we鈥檙e more spaced out. It would just be about getting used to that. In the mountain bike starts we鈥檙e packed in tight so I鈥檓 used to being in bunches. It would be just a matter of getting used to a different sort of bunch. I have the skills to figure it out pretty quick. On the road bike I can descend fast and I can corner well. It would be about learning to read the bunch, when to move up and those nuances that are really important in road racing,鈥� he said.

It鈥檚 still unclear what success would look like for Swenson regarding racing worlds. Neilson Powless is likely to lead the line for the men鈥檚 team after finishing fifth last year, while Magnus Sheffield will be hoping to make up for his crash in the individual time trial.

鈥淎t worlds I鈥檇 love to try and get in a breakaway and see how long that lasts. If I can finish in the lead bunch, that would be great. USAC would be extremely happy with that too and while I don鈥檛 have the tactics or maybe the punch to be with the lead guys, just making it over the climbs would be great,鈥� he added.

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Australian pro cyclist Lachlan Morton is riding the 539-mile Colorado Trail this week as a way to honor his late friend , of Kenya, who tragically died in August while racing the Vermont Overland gravel race.

Morton set off on the famous route across the Colorado high country on Tuesday, September 6. He previously rode the trail back in 2019, and set out to set a Fastest Known Time on the route, but came up short, completing the trek in three days and 22 hours, about three hours short of the record. This year Morton is not aiming to break a record, and is instead concentrating on generated funds for Kangangi鈥檚 family through his ride.

Kangangi crashed during the Vermont Overland gravel race in August and died from his injuries. He was just 33 years old.

Kangangi was a member and the captain of , a squad of off-road riders from Kenya, Uganda, and Rwanda. He and Morton raced one another multiple times in recent years, and when news of Kangangi鈥檚 death was publicized, Morton posted a tribute on his Instagram account, stating: 鈥淐ycling lost one of its best yesterday. The world lost one of its best. I鈥檓 lost for words. We鈥檙e all going to miss you.鈥�

鈥淚f I鈥檓 being honest, I鈥檝e just tried to keep myself very busy which I know is not necessarily the right way to do it but I know I鈥檓 going to have a lot of time out there to think about him. No doubt, I鈥檒l be thinking about him for sure,鈥� Morton said Monday.

Morton also wants to use the ride to support Kangangi鈥檚 family by promoting a . $70,000 has been raised so far and anyone who makes a donation for Morton鈥檚 ride will have the chance to go forward 聽to win a Cannondale bike. All of the donations go to Kangangi鈥檚 wife and children.

The Colorado Trail runs between Denver and Durango and covers聽 539 miles of trails with nearly 75,000 feet of elevation gain through the Rocky Mountains. Morton will take on the ride unsupported, just as he did in 2019 during his first attempt.

鈥淚 did it once before in 2019 and it really kicked my butt. It was by far the hardest ride I鈥檇 done. The severity of the route. It was very slow going. It took me four days and I was hiking for probably 12 hours. It鈥檚 very technical and unrelenting,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t was everything I could do to finish it. I鈥檝e thought about it at least every week since then, how much it kicked my butt and how much I need to go back and try to make peace with the route.鈥�

Morton generated international headlines in 2021 when he rode the entire distance of the Tour de France as a bikepacking challenge, pedaling the route during the day and camping at night. He even rode the transfer distances between the stages, and completed 3,400 miles of total distance.

The Colorado Trail is an altogether different challenge, due to the high altitude and grinding climbs.

鈥淚 think about the route in its entirety and it still scares me in a way, which is cool,鈥� Morton said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 good to have a challenge where it is very uncertain if you can achieve it. I know I鈥檝e improved in all the areas that brought me undone last time.鈥�

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, the only American man聽to have won the Tour de France, has been diagnosed with chronic myelogenous leukemia. The news was announced by LeMond, who is 60, on his personal website on June 2.

LeMond said the form of leukemia is treatable and not life-threatening. He will begin treatment later this week in the U.S.

鈥淚 had been experiencing a few weeks of fatigue, which prompted me to go in for a checkup, which included some blood work,鈥� he said in a statement. 鈥淔ollowing a series of tests and a bone marrow biopsy, which was completed last week, I received my formal diagnosis last Friday. My doctors at the University of Tennessee, with consultation from a team at the Mayo Clinic, have outlined a chemotherapy protocol, which will begin this week.鈥�

LeMond shared his feelings around the diagnosis, explaining that along with a sense of understandable shock, there was a sense of relief coming from the fact that doctors had been able to make a quick diagnosis. He also said that if treatment goes as planned, he should be in remission within a few months.

LeMond won the Tour de France three times, first in 1986 and then in 1989 and 1990. He also won the rainbow jersey twice, in 1983 and again in 1989. He remains the most decorated male cyclist in American history and the country鈥檚 only men鈥檚 Tour champion. Lance Armstrong and Floyd Landis both won the Tour but were stripped of their titles for cheating.

Tour organizers also staged a race for women, called the Tour de France F茅minin from 1984 to 1989, and the first winner was American Marianne Martin. A new race for women, called the Tour de France Femmes, makes its debut this year.

Since retiring from the professional scene in 1994, LeMond has become a strong anti-doping advocate and worked for several media outlets at the Tour de France. His successful bike brand has gone from strength to strength in recent years, and in 2019, he was awarded the , honoring聽those who have performed an achievement that has an impact on American history and culture that is likely to be recognized as a major achievement in the recipient鈥檚 field long after the fact. Other notable winners include Jesse Owens and Jackie Robinson.

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鈥淣o one ever wants to hear the word cancer but, admittedly, there is great relief now to know why I was feeling poorly. My doctors and I have decided on a treatment, which will begin this week,鈥� he added.

鈥淚 should be feeling better in a few weeks, and for the near future, my daily schedule will be altered only a little, and I have been told that in a few months I should be in remission. The long-term prognosis is very favorable. I am fortunate to have a great team of doctors and the full support of my family, friends, and colleagues at LeMond Bicycles.鈥�

In the short term, LeMond has decided to pause his plans to be at the Tour de France in July. He will instead follow the race from his home and continue to work on his LeMond Bicycles brand. The company has several projects in the mix at present, and while LeMond receives treatment, he will also support his colleagues.

鈥淲e have a great team at LeMond Bicycles who are being updated about my medical condition as we prepare this statement, and I am confident our work and plans for the near future will not be disrupted in any way,鈥� he said.

鈥淚 will continue to participate in and support our plans for the summer months ahead. I had hoped to be in France in July for the Tour, but we are now working on an alternate plan so I can follow the Tour and engage with friends and teammates from our offices and farm in Tennessee. I will look forward to returning to the Tour next summer.

鈥淚 will keep everyone updated about my health and treatments in the months ahead, but for now, I believe I couldn鈥檛 be in better hands. I am excited about our plans ahead, and I look forward to updating you all along the way.鈥�

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