Former Mount Aspiring College student Mikayla Harvey has renewed her contract with professional women’s cycling team Equipe Paule Ka.

Twenty-one year old Mikayla was in Italy racing when the coronavirus pandemic hit. She managed to get home and trained in New Zealand during lockdown, and recently returned when racing commenced in Europe.  

Mikayla and fellow Kiwi Niamh Fisher-Black competed at the iconic women’s world tour re-start at the Strade Bianche recently for the Equipe Paule Ka team.

This race is seen as an unofficial ‘monument’ alongside races such as Tour Of Flanders, Flèche Wallonne, and Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Patrick Harvey, Mikayla’s coach and father, told the Wanaka App. 

“Just being selected for this race for their team was an achievement in itself.”

Patrick said Mikayla had a “fantastic” race, thriving on the dusty gravel sectors and helping protect her riders and get them into position for key moments of the race.  

Mikayla and Leah Thomas.

As a result of this team effort, the team’s lead rider Leah Thomas finished on the podium in third place, and Mikayla ended in an impressive 12th place - and as the first under-23 rider, a result Equipe called “a remarkable achievement”.

Only 45 of the 125 riders managed to finish the race.  

“This was an amazing result for the team and Mikayla in a stacked field containing several ex world champions, and in very challenging conditions with temperatures in the 40s,” Patrick said.

The Strade Bianche race followed three days of racing in Spain the week before, where Mikayla, Ella and Niamh also achieved impressive results.

Mikayla is now the second rider, after Leah, to announce she has renewed her contract with Equipe, which Patrick called “huge” for the young cyclist.

PHOTOS: Equipe Paule Ka