Harrie Lavreysen gutted not to face archrival Richardson at the 2026 Track Cycling World Championships

Lavreysen has set his sights on the World Championships, where he made history last year by winning no fewer than four gold medals. In addition to the Sprint and Keirin, he also took first place in the Team Sprint and Time Trial. A repeat of that performance in China seems possible, now that Richardson won’t be there.

The 27-year-old Briton, who took on a different nationality after the Olympic Games and left Australia behind, has been sent home by the British Cycling Federation. “The sprinter is alleged to have made discriminatory remarks about people with an immigrant background,” various media outlets, including those in Great Britain, reported on Monday evening.

Lavreysen didn't comment on the controversy surrounding Richardson on Tuesday, but he did tell De Telegraaf that he's disappointed by the absence of his main rival.

The Dutch superstar, who already has 20 world titles on the track, had prepared meticulously for the World Championships, where he hoped to bounce back after a disappointing European Championships.

Lavreysen will compete in the Sprint, Keirin, and Team Sprint in Shanghai and says, “I’m eager for a rematch. Richardson was also in Japan (where Lavreysen trained last summer, ed.), and when I saw him riding there with those European stripes and stars on his jersey, it really got to me. I wasn’t in my best shape in February, but I am now. So I would have loved to beat him here.”

On NOS, Dutch national team coach Hugo Haak also weighed in on the controversy that is already dominating the World Championships. “The first thing we thought was: it’s such a shame that we can’t compete. We’ve prepared thoroughly for this World Championship, and when we’re at the starting line, we always want to beat the competition.”

"Harrie is a great champion and is eager to compete against the best on the track, and that has been Richardson in recent years," said Haak, who once again called it "a real shame" that this showdown won't take place at the upcoming World Championships. “Harrie feels the same way. But there are plenty of other competitors who will be tough to beat.”

Haak names Leigh Hoffman, Nicholas Paul, and Mikhail Jakovlev, among others, as the remaining competitors.