Trinidad and Tobago cyclist Nicholas Paul finished the first leg of the UCI Track Champions League in third place on the men’s sprint overall standings after competing in two events at the Velodrome National de Saint Quentin-en-Yvelines in France over the weekend.

Paul finished third in the sprint and fifth in the keirin events in the opening round of the 2024 series.

England’s three-time Paris Olympic medalist Matthew Richardson was on top of the sprint field in the final ahead of Dutchman Harrie Lavreysen, Olympic, UCI World and European Championships sprint champion.

Both cyclists also secured the one-two finish in the keirin with Colombia’s Kevin Quintero third, Cristian Ortega fourth and Paul coming in fifth.

Legs two and three of the Champions League moves to the Omnisport Apeldoorn in the Netherlands on Nov. 29 and 30, with the final two set for Dec. 6 in Lee Valley Velopark in England.

The UCI Champions League runs with every round featuring the same race program. Riders compete in sprint or endurance categories and score points across all five rounds.

Each category has two different types of races in which competitors can gather points and at the end of the five stages, four champions will be awarded; two men and two women in each category.