How the cycling rankings work
Cycling has a separate ranking for each discipline, all run by the UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale). They work the same basic way: points for where you finish, more points at bigger events, added up over the last year or so.
On the track (the velodrome), there are rider rankings and country rankings for the sprint events (sprint and keirin), the endurance events (omnium, scratch, points and elimination races), the madison, the team pursuit and the team sprint. A World Championships win in the sprint is worth 1000 points, a World Cup win 800, a continental championship win 600. A rider keeps:
- their World Championships result;
- their continental championship result;
- their best World Cup result;
- their best three results in each of two smaller classes of race;
- their national championship result.
Points drop off after a year (championships stay until the next edition, up to 18 months).
On the road, in mountain biking and in BMX racing, the Olympic places for Los Angeles 2028 go by rankings of countries built from riders' UCI points (see the LA28 pages for each).
The UCI Track Ranking
| Ranking | Events |
|---|---|
| Endurance | Omnium, scratch race, points race, elimination race |
| Sprint | Sprint, keirin |
| Madison | Madison |
| Team pursuit (countries only) | Team pursuit |
| Team sprint (countries only) | Team sprint |
There is an individual version of the first three and a country version of all five, for elite and junior riders (under-23 results count in the elite ranking).
Which results count, per event in the ranking:
| Competition | Counted |
|---|---|
| Olympic Games | The result, where there is one |
| World Championships | The result |
| Continental championships | The result |
| World Cup | Best one |
| Class 1 races (including regional games) | Best three |
| Class 2 races (including regional games) | Best three |
| National championships | The result |
Time. The ranking covers one year: new points are added and points from the same day a year earlier drop off. If two editions of a championship fall in the year, only the latest counts; championship points stay until the next edition or for at most 18 months. The ranking is published at least once a week.
Country rankings. For the team pursuit and team sprint, a country's points are summed up to the size of the team (four and three riders); riders beyond that score nothing.
Points: omnium, sprint and keirin
| Place | World Championships / Olympic Games | World Cup | Continental championships | Class 1 | Class 2 / national championships |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1000 | 800 | 600 | 200 | 100 |
| 2 | 900 | 720 | 540 | 180 | 90 |
| 3 | 800 | 640 | 480 | 160 | 80 |
| 5 | 700 | 560 | 420 | 140 | 70 |
| 10 | 450 | 360 | 270 | 90 | 45 |
| 16 | 260 | 208 | 156 | 52 | 26 |
| 24 | 85 | 80 | 60 | 20 | 10 |
| 25 and below | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
The scratch, points and elimination races have a lower scale (750 for a World Championships win). Team events have their own:
| Win at | Team pursuit (4 riders) | Team sprint (3 riders) | Madison (2 riders) |
|---|---|---|---|
| World Championships / Olympic Games | 2000 (500 each) | 1500 (500 each) | 2000 (1000 each) |
| World Cup | 1600 | 1200 | 1600 |
| Continental championships | 1200 | 900 | 1200 |
A worked example
Made up to show the arithmetic. An Indian sprinter's year in the sprint:
| Result | Points |
|---|---|
| World Championships, 16th | 260 |
| Asian Championships, 3rd | 480 |
| Best World Cup, 10th | 360 |
| Three Class 1 races: 1st, 2nd, 5th | 200 + 180 + 140 = 520 |
| Three Class 2 races: 1st, 1st, 2nd | 100 + 100 + 90 = 290 |
| National championships, 1st | 100 |
| Total | 2,010 |
The keirin results go into the same sprint ranking, counted the same way.
The LA28 track qualification ranking
A separate ranking for Olympic places: World Championships 2026 and 2027, best two World Cups in each of 2027 and 2028, continental championships 2027 and 2028 at 0.75 of the points. See the track LA28 page.
Road, mountain bike and BMX racing (outline)
| Road | Mountain bike | BMX racing | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Olympic places decided by | UCI road ranking by nations, 19 October 2027 | UCI Mountain Bike Olympic Qualification Ranking, 30 May 2028 | UCI BMX Racing Olympic Qualification Ranking, 30 May 2028 |
| What it adds up | Elite and under-23 results on the UCI road calendar, last 52 weeks | Each country's three best riders, from 27 April 2026, in two periods | Each country's three best riders, 4 August 2026 to 29 May 2028: two World Championships, best 14 World Cups, one continental, best three Hors Classe, best eight Class 1 / Class 2 / regional games, 2027 nationals |
The points each race gives are in parts of the UCI Regulations not saved here.
Variations
| Ranking | Covered here |
|---|---|
| UCI Track Ranking | Yes |
| Road, mountain bike, BMX racing Olympic rankings | In outline |
| Their points scales | No |
| BMX freestyle | No ranking used for LA28 (Qualifier Series and championships) |
| Cyclo-cross, para-cycling | No |