Jojo Harper, Instagram @jojoharper_
Jojo Harper, Instagram @jojoharper_
Fierce Determination
Pioneer Kasia Niewiadoma
CANYON//SRAM, Pro Cycling UCI Women's WorldTeam
2019 Amstel Gold Race Winner
Kasia Niewiadoma is a refreshing dose of power and style for the sport of cycling. The Polish racer has figured out how to passionately win races with grit and determination with her team CANYON//SRAM, and still pursue a sense of balance and peace of mind. A cool and collected “It Girl” in women’s bike racing, she’s got her eyes and heart set on Olympic dreams.
Story by Jen Whalen
Photography by Jojo Harper, Instagram: @jojoharper_
This girl’s light is blinding. She glows in every podium picture and her positive spirit shines upon the sport. It’s one of the coolest things about BOA pioneer Kasia Niewiadoma, a Polish racer of the iconic team CANYON//SRAM. Her expressiveness and ability to have fun makes her personality stand out in the peloton. She’s serving us with realness, and we are ready for it.
Her popularity and winning streak put her in the spotlight as one of the most exciting and promising riders to come out of the sport in recent years. And she doesn’t let that headline down. She’s placed multiple times in Worlds and racked up wins at The Women’s Tour, Tour Cycliste Féminin International de l’Ardèche, Trofeo Alfredo Binda, Giro Rosa and Amstel Gold. It’s safe to say she’s earned her “it girl” reputation.
Kasia’s unquenchable thirst for the W keeps her focused. “The desire of winning drives me to stay focused during a race. It’s the only thing I think about in the hard moments. Once you have it in your head everything seems to be so much easier.”
Kasia Niewiadoma after winning the 2019 Strade Bianche, Photo by Jojo Harper
Kasia Niewiadoma after winning the 2019 Strade Bianche, Photo by Jojo Harper
“The desire of winning drives me to stay focused during a race. It’s the only thing I think about in the hard moments.”
She’s an animated racer to watch in the game, launching attacks and dominating with style. “I feel most dialed in whenever I’m attacking or when I’m in the action...at the end of the race when you really have to go hard.”
“I’m always trying to be better.” This sounds like her mantra in training and in life, and it’s probably what makes her such a great leader. She adds, with a refreshing dash of self-awareness, “at every race I learn something about myself.”
She hopes to one day glow on the podium at the Olympics. “An Olympic medal is my biggest dream. Winning a race or getting a medal when you’re representing your country is something super sweet” Kasia gushes from Italy, where she is doing recon with her team for the next big race on the calendar - Giro Rosa. The race is set for September, and would be one of the first to take place since Covid-19 has cancelled most of the season up until now, but Kasia is unsure if she’ll get to the start line. “No one knows 100 percent what’s going to happen, so we’re just living day to day to see how everything evolves.” After the recon, she’ll return back home to the Spanish cycling mecca of Girona to continue putting in the work.
Kasia keeps her cool in the pressure cooker of bike racing by taking time to enjoy two wheels. “I try to get into the forest with my gravel bike and treat cycling as a fun hobby and not only as my job, not always having to perform. I need to remind myself that I fell in love with cycling because of the freedom of riding a bicycle, and not because of racing and just trying to win races all the time.”
Mental health and making space for joy seem to be just as important as winning to her. “You can do so many different things with your life. It’s not that your destiny is to only ride the bicycle and to make a living racing. It’s good to see that there are so many ways of fulfilling yourself and finding your happiness. Shine, Kasia, shine that dominating, blinding light. We look forward to seeing Kasia do what makes her happy, while approaching the sport with fierce determination.
