Life Time Grand Prix announces 2023 athletes
Returning champs Haley Smith and Keegan Swenson join a roster of newcomers and 2022 series veterans.
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Drum roll, please.
Life Time has announced the 70 athletes who have been selected to compete in the 2023 Life Time Grand Prix series presented by Mazda.
It’s a mix of new and familiar faces for the second edition of the series, with 10 additional riders and one additional race upping the ante for the $250,000 prize purse.
Life Time unveils details of 2023 Grand Prix series
Reigning champions Haley Smith and Keegan Swenson will both be back in 2023, as will six more of the top-10 women from 2022. Every rider in last year’s men’s top-10 is returning in 2023.
According to Life Time, over 200 athletes applied for a spot in the series.
New and notable riders on the women’s side include 2021 Unbound Gravel champ Lauren De Crescenzo, Panamerican cyclocross champ Raylyn Nuss, five-time French national cyclocross champion Caroline Mani, and Ironman pro Heather Jackson.
Six nations will be represented, including the US, Canada, Australia, England, France, and South Africa, and with an age range of 19-47 years of age.
On the men’s side, South African marathon MTB champ Matt Beers will join other Grand Prix newcomers like Brennan Wertz, ‘cross pro Eric Brunner, and teen phenom Ian Lopez de San Roman.
The US, Canada, Australia, Switzerland, and South Africa will be represented on the men’s side, with Canadian Rob Britton, 38, as the oldest male and Lopez de San Roman the youngest at 19.
Colorado is the most heavily-represented state, with 11 women and eight men calling the Centennial state home.
The Grand Prix is a seven-race points-based series, with riders’ overall results based on their six best finishes. The races are the same as in 2022, with a new, yet-to-be-announced ‘wild card’ event. The series kicks off in April at Sea Otter. Big Sugar Gravel in October will serve as a mandatory tie-breaker.
2023 Life Time Grand Prix presented by Mazda
- April 22: Fuego XL 100K cross-country mountain bike race at the Sea Otter Classic in Monterey, California
- June 3: 200-mile Garmin Unbound Gravel presented by Craft Sportswear in Emporia,
Kansas - July 8: 69-mile Life Time Crusher in the Tushar presented by The Creamery in Beaver,
Utah - August 12: 104-mile Stages Cycling Leadville Trail 100 MTB in Leadville, Colorado
- September 16: 40-mile Life Time Chequamegon MTB presented by Trek in Cable, Wisconsin
- October 21: 100-mile Life Time Big Sugar Gravel presented by Mazda in Bentonville,
Arkansas (mandatory tie breaker) - Wild card event: the seventh event will be announced on January 11
Elite women
- Crystal Anthony, 42, Bentonville, Arkansas
- Ella Bloor, 27, Kingston, Australia
- Chelsea Bolton, 33, Park City, Utah
- Ellen Campbell, 25, Durango, Colorado
- Catherine Colyn, 26, Paarl, South Africa
- Lauren De Crescenzo, 32, Atlanta, Georgia
- Rebecca Fahringer, 33, Bend, Oregon
- Maude Farrell, 31, Redwood City, California
- Sofia Gomez Villafane, 28, Heber City, Utah
- Emma Grant, 31, Reading, England
- Isabella Hyser, 19, Huntsville, Alabama
- Heather Jackson, 38, Bend, Oregon
- Isabel King, 32, Los Angeles, California
- Caroline Mani, 35, Besancon, France
- Holly Mathews, 34, Longmont, Colorado
- Sarah Max, 47, Bend, Oregon
- Deanna Mayles, 29, Colorado Springs, Colorado
- Julie Momber, 35, Grand Rapids, Michigan
- Jessica Mullins, 44, Littleton, Colorado
- Angela Naeth, 40, Brewster, Massachusetts
- Emily Newsom, 39, Fort Worth, Texas
- Raylyn Nuss, 31, St. Louis, Missouri
- Paige Onweller, 33, Grand Rapids, Michigan
- Hannah Otto, 26, Millcreek, Utah
- Jenna Rinehart, 38, Mankato, Minnesota
- Hannah Shell, 31, Longmont, Colorado
- Danielle Shrosbree, 28, London, England
- Alexis Skarda, 33, Grand Junction, Colorado
- Haley Smith, 29, Waterloo, Quebec,
- Sarah Sturm, 32, Durango, Colorado
- Starla Teddergreen, 43, Longmont, Colorado
- Caroline Tory, 32, Snowmass, Colorado
- Leah Van der Linden, 28, Boulder, Colorado
- Ruth Winder, 29, Nederland, Colorado
- Anna Yamauchi, 22, Truckee, California
Elite men
- Matthew Beers, 28, Cape Town, South Africa
- John Bortselmann, 31, Lincoln, Nebraska
- Robert Britton, 38, Victoria, British Columbia
- Eric Brunner, 24, Boulder, Colorado
- Zach Calton, 25, Ogden, Utah
- Griffin Easter, 31, Park City, Utah
- Russell Finsterwald, 31, Colorado Springs, Colorado
- Howard Grotts, 29, Durango, Colorado
- Lance Haidet, 24, San Luis Obispo, California
- Alex Howes, 34, Nederland, Colorado
- Dylan Johnson, 27, Brevard, North Carolina
- Brendan Johnston, 31, Canberra, Australia
- Andrew L’Esperance, 31, Halifax, Nova Scotia
- Bradyn Lange, 23, Mendocino, California
- Taylor Lideen, 33, Bentonville, Arkansas
- Konny Looser, 33, Hinwil, Switzerland
- Payson McElveen, 29, Durango, Colorado
- Lachlan Morton, 30, Boulder, Colorado
- Tasman Nankervis, 27, Bendigo, Australia
- Logan Owen, 27, Bremerton, Washington
- Cole Paton, 25, Cashmere, Washington
- Kiel Reijnen, 35, Bainbridge Island, Washington
- Adam Roberge, 25, Prevost, Quebec
- Nathan Spratt, 27, Salt Lake City, Utah,
- Peter Stetina, 35, Santa Rosa, California
- Keegan Swenson, 28, Heber City, Utah
- Kyle Trudeau, 29, Tucson, Arizona
- Alexey Vermeulen, 28, Boulder, Colorado
- Kerry Werner, 31, Vinton, Virgina
- Brennan Wertz, 25, Mill Valley, California
- Innokenty Zavyalov, 31, Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Tobin Ortenblad, 28, Santa Cruz, California
- Ryan Standish, 29, South Salt Lake, Utah
- Jack Odron, 20, Denver, Colorado
- Ian Lopez De San Roman, 19, Sebastopol, California