By: Isaac Mortey
DerbyWheel (DW) is a new global Pro Keirin Racing sports event focusing on globalizing historic Professional Keirin Track Cycle Racing which currently is organized largely as a closed domestic enterprise in Japan and Korea.
DW’s intent, mission and goal is to create an open Professional Keirin League with equal accessibility available for the entire cycling family providing benefits to riders, venues and other stakeholders across the globe.

Our vision is to establish an annual calendar hosting DW events each week across multiple territories.
Phase 1 of our launch plan was completed in January 2024 with 343 riders from 26 countries worldwide processed at rider inductions hosted in Australia, South Korea and the UK.
We plan to host a test event in the UK on 26-28 April with the first full season beginning early June 2024.

BACKGROUND – HISTORY OF PRO KEIRIN
● Originated in Japan in 1948
● Introduced in Korea in 1994 as a legacy project following
the 1988 Seoul Olympics
● Became Olympic discipline in 2000 (Sydney)
● Closed domestic enterprises in Japan and Korea orientated around sports betting
● Limited opportunities for international Riders to race in Japan
- Chris Hoy, Shane Perkins, Ross Edgar
● DerbyWheel CEO (Scapin Lee) Key player in Korean Keirin
vision to Globalize Pro Keirin
BENEFITS OF DERBYWHEEL
DW will provide a new foundation to the track cycling ecosystem that will help make the economic model of the sport more sustainable and facilitate growth. Benefits will include:
● Riders – DW events will provide significant additional earning potential for riders at all levels making the sport sustainable for existing riders and providing a pathway for new riders to enter the sport.
● Talent Development – DW will provide a pathway to develop riders through the creation of Keirin academies. We will work with Federations to complement their existing talent development programmes.
● Venue Utilisation – DW events will utilise velodromes across the globe providing important sources of revenue and content.
● Charitable Initiatives – DW will invest in charitable and community initiatives to create a positive impact.

DERBYWHEEL EVENTS
To launch DW we are planning a test event on 26-28 April 2024 in the UK.
The first full DW season will begin at the end of May 2024 and will feature the following event types:
● Standard Events – Standard events will take place at different velodromes internationally. In 2024 standard events will take place every 2 weeks and from 2025 onwards events will take place every week.
● Grand Prix Events – Championship events featuring the best-performing riders. Riders will be able to qualify for the Grand Prix events based on performance and points across the season. The final Grand Prix will decide the season champions and will feature the largest prize fund of the season.
DW events will be hosted in three continents initially: Europe, Oceania and Asia and will be expanded globally following the inaugural season
TOURNAMENT STRUCTURE
Each event will be a 3-day tournament.
The tournament structure will feature heats with progression to quarter finals > semi-finals> finals. There will be opportunities for riders to move up or down in the different categories of finals.
Each tournament will feature male and female competitions. We aim to have an equal number of riders in each tournament but the proportion of male and female riders in each tournament may vary depending on rider availability.
The tournament structure shown right is an example that will be trialled at the test event.
Different tournament structures will be applied to regular races and Special Events based on the rider composition.
EXAMPLE SCHEDULE
Each DW event will take place across 3 race days according to the tournament structure.
There will be approximately a 20-minute break between each race.
Indicative schedule detailed right – exact timings and structure to be confirmed and may vary by territory.

DWP BUSINESS OPERATIONS
DerbyWheel is owned by DerbyWheel Incorporated based in Seoul, South Korea.
DW events will be operated by the DW operating company: DerbyWheel Player Limited (DWP) based in the UK.
DWP is responsible for global event operations including:
● Event organisation and competition management.
● Broadcast Production.
● Management of DW athletes.
The team behind DerbyWheel is an expert international team with decades of experience of developing Pro Keirin in Korea and Japan and over 20 years organising major international track cycling events.
DWP BUSINESS MODEL
The DWP business model will be focussed on a content distribution model to provide a live feed and data to media companies and licensors for sports betting. DWP will own the rights to the DW events and content and will sell these rights globally. This will be supported by other revenue from DW events including ticket sales and commercial partnerships:
Content Distribution – DW events and data feeds will be distributed and licensed globally. DWP will not be involved with betting activities and no onsite betting activities will take place at DW events.
Ticket Sales – revenue generated from ticket sales across all DW events.
Commercial Revenue – additional revenue from sponsorships, hospitality and other commercial partners.

INTEGRITY PROTOCOLS
DW events and races will be organized and conducted as the perfected example of the pinnacle of integrity through strict adherence to UCI Regulations and Code of Ethics for anti-doping, prevention of competition manipulation, technical fraud and safeguarding athletes.
Integrity is a top priority so the following measures will be implemented for all DW events:
● Preventative Measures – The DW team has decades of experience of developing and managing integrity measures for Korean Pro Keirin racing. This methodology and preventative measures will be applied to DW races.
● Integrity and Monitoring Agency – DW will partner with Sportradar – a global leader in protecting sports against match-fixing, doping and other integrity threats.
● Education and Rider Welfare – Education will be a key tool to prepare riders for the risks and consequences of competition manipulation. We will work with Sportradar to deliver workshops and education programmes that will also focus on rider welfare.
● Anti-Doping – we will follow all UCI anti-doping protocols and implement anti doping testing at DW events.