WHY DON'T FORMER WORLD CHAMPIONS WEAR SLEEVE BANDS ON THE TRACK?

If you come from road cycling, the rainbow bands are sacred. Former world champions carry them for life: thin horizontal stripes on the sleeves and collar, a quiet signal of pedigree that needs no explanation.

On the track, however, that tradition has never really existed.

In decades of elite track cycling former world champions simply do not race with rainbow sleeve bands. Once the title is gone, the visual marker disappears with it.

Which is why what we saw recently stood out.

Olympic madison champion Iuri Leitao of Portugal appeared wearing gold bands on the neck and sleeve cuffs of his skinsuit. Subtle. Tasteful. But unmistakable. In all our years of following track cycling, this is the first time we have ever seen anything like it.

So why is this so rare on the track?

The Road Tradition vs Track Reality

On the road, the rainbow bands are governed by long-standing convention and UCI regulations. Former world champions are explicitly permitted to wear the bands on standard trade team jerseys. It is culturally embedded and universally recognised.

Track cycling developed differently.

Track riders almost always compete in national team kits, these designs are approved in advance, often produced in limited runs, and rarely adapted for individual honours. The visual hierarchy prioritises the current champion only.

On the track:

• The current world champion wears the rainbow jersey
• The current regional champion can wear the relevant jersey (for example European, Panam, Asian Champion etc)
• Everyone else wears standard national colours
Once you are no longer the reigning champion, the kit reverts. No bands. No legacy markers.

Practical and Regulatory Reasons

There are also practical reasons this never took hold.

Track skinsuits are:

• Highly optimised for aerodynamics
• Often single-piece, national federation issued
• Produced to strict visual and sponsor guidelines
Adding personal elements such as sleeve bands introduces:

• Design approval issues
• Consistency problems across squads
• Potential conflicts with federation sponsors
• Questions around who qualifies (world vs Olympic, event-specific titles, team vs individual)

It is simply easier - and cleaner - to allow only the current champion to stand out.

Olympic Gold Changes the Equation

What makes Iuri Leitao’s case especially interesting is that this is not a world title, but an Olympic one.

The Olympics sit slightly outside normal UCI tradition. Gold bands on cuffs and collars are not codified in the same way rainbow bands are, which gives federations more freedom to interpret how Olympic success is acknowledged.

Portugal clearly chose to honour that achievement visually.

And it worked.

The gold trim did not look out of place. It did not distract. It did not challenge the rainbow jersey hierarchy. Instead, it quietly told a story: this rider has stood on the very top step of the sport.

Why We Rarely See It - And Why We Might Now

Track cycling has always been conservative in its visual language. But as the sport becomes more broadcast-focused and story-driven, subtle cues like this make sense.

Fans understand status.

Broadcasters want narratives.

Athletes deserve recognition beyond a single season.

Gold cuff bands for Olympic champions might never become widespread. But seeing it done once - and done well - opens the door.

After decades of never seeing anything like it, that alone makes this moment noteworthy.

And perhaps long overdue.

Another idea long overdue on the track is including rider names on the back of skinsuits, positioned over the shoulders much like football shirts.

Yes, riders already carry official race numbers, but those exist for commissaries and results, not spectators. Fans and broadcasters rarely register them in the heat of racing, especially with helmets, speed and constant position changes.

Visible names would instantly humanise the action, aid commentary, and help casual viewers follow races without compromising aerodynamics or national team identity.

Track cycling does not need radical reinvention, but it does need to evolve how it tells its stories. Small, thoughtful changes - gold accents for Olympic champions, subtle legacy markers, rider names that fans can actually see - respect the sport’s history while making it more accessible to modern audiences. Embracing these ideas is not about copying other disciplines, but about ensuring the athletes, their achievements and their identities are as visible as the performances themselves.