Tadej Pogacar secured his fifth Tour de France victory on Sunday, crossing the finish line on the Champs-Élysées with the MyWhoosh logo on his jersey. The virtual cycling platform sponsors UAE Team Emirates XRG and has become a key training tool for amateur riders.
Pogacar's Interest in the Platform
Matt Smithson, speaking about Pogacar's visit to MyWhoosh headquarters, noted that the cyclist was not focused on training metrics. "What surprised me most when he visited was what interested him," Smithson said. "He wanted to understand how the platform was built. He spent time with the artists and engineers asking how everything worked."
Pogacar even provided feedback on the platform's avatar. "He even gave feedback on how the avatar stands up and sits down on the bike because he didn't think it looked quite right," Smithson added.
Training Plans Inspired by a Champion
MyWhoosh originally launched as an online racing platform, but many users adopted it for structured training. It now offers around 1,000 workouts. Riders can create their own sessions or follow complete plans ranging from beginner to professional level. Smithson explained that the platform collaborated with Pogacar's coaching team to develop training programmes for everyday cyclists.
"The goal wasn't to recreate Pogacar's exact training because that simply wouldn't be realistic," Smithson said. "Instead, we took the core concepts behind those sessions and made them achievable for amateur riders. Pogacar might do 12 or even 18 efforts in a session. Ours might have six. But the thresholds, recovery periods and physiological objectives are all based on the same principles used by UAE."
Smithson emphasised that the collaboration with UAE Team Emirates is ongoing. "UAE are obviously one of the biggest organisations in cycling, so they're incredibly busy," he said. "But we regularly speak with the team about ways we can improve the platform." He added that indoor training plays a significant role for professionals like Jay Vine, who uses it for its controlled environment. Some riders ride outdoors before completing structured sessions indoors.
Accessibility and the Future of Virtual Cycling
Smithson highlighted the barriers that virtual riding removes. "You don't have to join a club immediately. You don't have to learn bunch etiquette before improving your fitness. Indoor cycling lets you focus purely on your engine. You don't have to worry about traffic, corners, riding in the rain or sitting on someone's wheel. You can just get fitter," he said.
MyWhoosh offers a progression route from easy rides to group rides, structured training, racing, verified racing, and eventually prize-money competitions. This summer, the platform offered a $1 million (£750,000) prize pot for the MyWhoosh Championship. Smithson believes virtual cycling will become a major racing avenue: "I genuinely believe virtual cycling is going to become the racing scene for a huge number of people over the next ten years."
