Interview Katherine Sarkisov

Winter is coming, but America's biggest cyclocross talent is already shining in Summer. Katherine Sarkisov had a dominant season in the mud and continues this trend on the road. After 2 domestic titles, the 18 years old is ready to seek success on the world stage in Australia. In this interview, the rider from Maryland tells you about her life, her ambitions and how she experiences the sport. Get to know an athlete that you might encounter on many podiums in the future.

Last cyclocross season, you dominated the domestic calendar, did every victory taste as good as the first one?

The early season races were slightly less competitive than the later season races so it felt better to win the mid/late season races. Races that I placed a bigger emphasis on, such as Nationals, definitely felt much better to win than other races I did during the season.

Around the Christmas period you came to Belgium for racing, how did it feel to race in Europe for the first time?

It was a shock to the system at first. The field were bigger and stronger than the US fields but after a few races, I settled into the rhythm of European cross racing and came away with my first European podium at Baal.

You became national champion on both the road as in the time trial race. Do you have any ambitions for the Worlds?

Yes, at Worlds I have high ambitions set for the road race. I am better at road races than time trials so I have higher hopes for the road race. At Fayetteville CX Worlds, my goal was to be top 10 and I finished 11th, so my goal for this years Road Worlds would be to finish top 10.

You turned 18 this year. Will you go all out for your cycling carreer or would you like to combine it with a study or a job?

I am combining my cycling career with studying then next 4 years. I am starting college this year at the University of Maryland in pursuit of a computer science degree. It is hard to make a good living wage from women’s cycling so I plan to balance school and cycling to ensure a better living years down the line.

What are your ambitions or the upcoming cyclocross season?

My goal is to qualify for World Championships this upcoming cyclocross season. I am aging up to the U23 category so it will be a much bigger challenge than last year but doable nonetheless.

How did you enter the sport?

I entered the sport by joining a local junior cycling team called Rock Creek Velo. We had team practices and rides 4 times a week and went to all of the local cyclocross and road races. I quickly fell in love with the sport after doing only a few races.

What are the best & worst things about being a cyclist for you?

One of the best things about cycling is how much control you have over your performance. Your performance is so largely dependent on your actions and habits so it is nice to see all of the hard work pay off in results. One of the worlds things about cycling if how much time it requires, because of this it can be hard to balance cycling with real life.

Which kind of cyclocross tracks suit you the best in your opinion?

yclocross tracks that suit me best are technical and have lots of elevation gain. I typically don’t do as well on flat tracks that resemble dirt criteriums.