INTERNATIONAL competition is always an exciting opportunity in the develop of a young athlete, something cyclist Milo Skuce has experienced first hand after competing in the Chinese National Youth Cycling Championship 2025 in Xiamen, China.
Skuce (12), a promising young member of the Jersey Youth Cycling Club and Jersey TriStar Club, competed in the U14 category.
The competition in China hosted 300 athletes from 56 different teams and reflected the highest standard of the youth riders after regional selective races in the 22 provinces and five autonomous regions across China.
The dedicated race circuit was a flat 7.1km course, 12 metres wide with five bends and located by a scenic coast road.
Day one saw Skuce competing in the time trial, three laps for a total of 21.3km. Skuce, as one of the last riders to start, completed his three laps in 36 mins 57.77 seconds at average speed of 34.1km per hour.
The top finisher in his bracket crossed the line in 29.09.60. Skuce finishing nearly eight minutes back, placed 29th of the 33 athletes in his bracket.
Day two was the individual race, featuring five laps and totalling 35.5km. Skuce showed impressive bike handling skills and endurance, following the first breakaway group for the first lap.
After dropping back slightly, Skuce joined a small group of three riders who worked
their way back into the race together, avoiding the large crash that had occurred ahead of them.
On the final lap his group were dropped, leaving a battle between the Caesarean and his closest rider. Side by side for the last 100 metres, Skuce pipped him to the line by just two seconds, finishing in a time of 57mins 10secs.
This left him seventh overall from 34 athletes, a strong effort from the young star.
