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Awang: I hope comeback will inspire the people of Malaysia
Keirin legend Azizulhasni Awang posted a statement on X/Twitter following Saturday’s press conference, at which he announced his intention to keep riding, but outside the Malaysian team structure. The 37-year-old Pocket Rocketman admitted that he too had felt the Paris Olympics might be the end of his career; but having taken time to reflect, he…
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Awang quits Malaysian national squad, but will ride on
Malaysian keirin superstar Azizulhasni Awang has announced that he will continue his career as a professional rider – but no longer with the country’s national squad. ‘I decided to return to being active in the cycling arena competitively, but the journey is a little different and I will not be with the national team,’ he…
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Moving beyond DerbyWheel name and its baggage
When the figurehead of the DerbyWheel project to reinvent track cycling writes an article about reinventing track cycling, and doesn’t use the word DerbyWheel, that’s worth a closer look. For what it’s worth, we never liked the name DerbyWheel. Nobody would hear the name, and instantly associate it with bicycles or velodromes. Nobody searching online…
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DerbyWheel’s Pope outlines plan to save track cycling
DerbyWheel CEO James Pope has published an article on LinkedIn describing ‘the initial 5 steps (he) would take to try and fix track cycling’, presenting Pro Keirin as the foundation of a pyramid supporting UCI events. With track cycling in something of a crisis, with the termination of the Track Champions League, and the failure…
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A full year since the last DerbyWheel news update
It gives Global Keirin no pleasure whatsoever to note that today marks exactly one year since the last ‘news‘ article was posted on the DerbyWheel website. Regular readers will know we watch closely for any signs of life. CEO James Pope posted a video message on the homepage last June, confirming that there would be…
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American velodrome series pushes launch back to 2026
TeamTrak Cycling League, the velodrome series which promised four United States arena events building to a championship event in October 2025, has quietly delayed its launch by twelve months. At some point in the last four weeks, TeamTrak’s website switched from announcing ‘coming 2025’, with a firm date and location for its season finale –…
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Japanese keirin channel posts English language guide
The official YouTube channel for Japanese keirin has published a new guide to the experience of watching and placing bets at a keirin event. But for the first time, as far as we can tell, the video has been posted in both Japanese and English versions. Over the course of 10 minutes – with an…
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Genest adds Panam keirin gold to sprint success
Canada’s Lauriane Genest claimed her second Panamerican keirin championship, and her second individual gold in Asunción, with a decisive victory in Sunday’s final. She made her move early, with only Yuli Verdugo able to follow, and the pair were several lengths clear as they entered the last lap. With only the home straight to go,…
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What can DerbyWheel learn from Johnson’s athletics startup?
We have written previously about Grand Slam Track, Michael Johnson’s initiative to launch a ‘regular season’ for top-level athletics, filling the gaps between Olympics. There are obvious parallels with DerbyWheel’s plans to do likewise for global track cycling, as DerbyWheel’s CEO James Pope has noted recently on LinkedIn. So what did Global Keirin spot in…
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Another Panam gold for Quintero in Paraguay
Former world champion Kevin Quintero added a third Panamerican keirin championship to his collection on Thursday, with victory in the men’s event in Asunción, Paraguay. The Colombian had claimed the last place in the final with a late dash to the line in his semi, finishing third behind Nicholas Paul – winner of the overall…
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Japanese keirin betting doubles in five years
Data published by the JKA, the governing body for keirin racing in Japan, shows that betting turnover rose by 11% in the past 12 months. A total of 1.328 trillion yen, or 8.886 billion US dollars, was wagered in the year to 31 March 2025, according to provisional figures published with remarkable efficiency on 1…
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Japanese keirin’s new TV ad gets back to basics
The latest TV advertising campaign from Japan’s JKA, the governing body for the country’s pro keirin circuit, returns to the fundamentals of track cycling. The premise is broadly the same as the New Year campaign, a telepathic conversation with a keirin pro. A young professional man is dining alone, staring at his smartphone. He is…
