Natalia Franco - Zwift indoor climbing to outdoor winning!
Increased FTP and mental strength
BOISE, ID - July 22 2020 - Colombian student / athlete Natalia Franco is in her first season with TWENTY20. Without a traditional opportunity to shine, Franco has adapted quickly to Zwift racing. She was a member of a criterium squad last year so her focus was flat fast races. Being from Medellin, Colombia she has climbing in her DNA! It's been a challenging year to work on climbing but with Zwift she was able to accomplish that and with marked progress.

Recent Zwift Highlights
1st La Ruta Colombia Virtual
2nd USA Cycling League Tempest Fugit
3rd USA Cycling League La Reine
3rd WTRL Gravel Jungle Circuit
3rd USA Cycling Bologna Time Trial

IRL Highlights
1st Roan Groan Road Race
1st Foothills Fondo

"From the moment I started to put all my effort into Zwift this pandemic, not only I have become a better Zwift racer, but also, I have increased my power output in incredible amounts. Power output, whether it is indoors or outdoors, it still power output. So if you see an increase of power output indoors in your 10, 20, 60min FTP, you for sure will see an improvement outdoors. I can clearly confirm that this improvement has been reflected in the real outside world because I feel stronger than ever, I am flying in the long sustained efforts up a climb (which results in lots of QOMs and PRs!!), and I won the only 2 races I have done after the pandemic started (Roan Groan RR and Foothills Fondo).

Additionally, It also helped me to strengthen my mind in an amazing way! Climbing long steep climbs in Zwift or IRL, is not all about physical performance and numbers, it is also about mental toughness and focus. How long can I sustain a high W/Kg ratio? I increased my confidence by telling myself: “if I can race 2+ hours on Zwift close to my FTP, I can definitely do a 1h climb at a harder pace“.
A good explanation about using Zwift to progress on the road is the amusement part of it. Do not get me wrong, I suffer outdoors just as much as I suffer indoors, but the real difference is on our focus of attention. In Zwift, our focus of attention is predominantly on external cues such as the people we are riding with or against, visible PR goals, the avatar moving forward, and different graphics. In real life, our focus of attention is predominantly in internal cues such as how much our legs hurt in the moment, our thoughts, and body movements.

I am a soon to be a sport psychologist (I graduate in December, YAY!) and I have found research that indicates that having an external focus of attention induces automaticity, which helps attaining optimum performance. Consequently, Zwift does an amazing job distracting our negative thoughts and suffering, until you actually get better at not thinking too much and suffering. In other words, you get comfortable being uncomfortable! Thus, surpassing those crisis of pain and discomfort is what expands our HR, our power, and most importantly, our mental threshold!! So RIDE ON!"
UCI Zwift World Championships

Goal: Zwift UCI World Championships
When I saw the news that the UCI was going to have the first Zwift Worlds, I channeled all my energy and resources to participate on them. I read the two prerequisites and found out that I was eligible since (1) I was part of the list of qualified riders per major event past participation, and that (2) I was part of the testing pool in Colombia. However, Colombia only got the invitation on the men side because there was not enough pro women eligible to race them (only me).

Therefore, I emailed the Colombian federation with all my stats to ask for a wild card on my behalf. I am now participating in the testing pool and my Federation of Colombia will meet with the UCI. I am very hopeful as i continue to remain very focused on Zwift.

  • Top 45 female standings worldwide
  • 1st Colombian female 
  • 2nd female Latin America
  • 15th Colombian overall including men

At the moment I am focusing on what I can control, getting more points on the weekly races while we hear back from the UCI. I invite you to cross fingers with me to obtain a wild card for the Zwift World Championships!!”
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Gratitude to our 2020 Partners
Zwift, FELT Bicycles, Zipp, SRAM, Quarq, Bonds Family Foundation, Violich Farms, Wild Health, Domestique Foundation, Sho-Air International, Athlos, Kenda Tire, Oakley, Speedplay, Catlike, J.A and Kathryn Albertson Family Foundation, PACE Ranch, Mikes Bikes, Velo Saddles, Training Peaks, Arundel Cages, KX3 Sports. AMP Human, DZ Nuts, Clif Bar, Rowan Interactive Media, Park Tool, Seasucker Racks, Sock Guy, Karen Malkin Health, NormaTec, USA Cycling Foundation, Victory Circle Graphix, Bauer Haus.
About TWENTY20 Pro Cycling
Formed in 2005, Team Twenty20 is a women’s professional and junior development cycling team focused on creating a pathway for athletes to the Olympics. The team has since produced 4 Olympic medalists, 17 world champions, and the current roster boasts 5 national champions hailing from the USA, Canada, and Mexico. Directed by 3x Olympic gold medalist, Kristin Armstrong, Twenty20’s unique team model enables experienced and elite riders to perform at their highest potential while offering junior riders a groundbreaking mentor program. The team is on the forefront of esports in cycling with partner Zwift, and works diligently with innovators and leaders in the sport for product advancement. 
 
For ten consecutive years, the team has been awarded the USA Cycling Centers of Excellence Award, which is awarded to select junior and Under-23 development teams that excel in the development of young cyclists into nationally competitive athletes. Developing future champions on the bike and leaders in the community are at the core of Twenty20’s values, with an emphasis to support athletes in obtaining the best education possible for life after cycling.