Emily Dixon - How Zwift turned a 17-year-old into a pro - Domestique Hotseat
In this episode Emily Dixon tells Aidan Burgess how she found herself racing in Europe at 17 against the biggest stars in the world. She entered Zwift Academy almost by accident, after a time trial got rained off in Melbourne. When the finals invitation came, her parents assumed it was a scam. She turned up in Portugal at 17, needing lawyer-verified travel documents, to be greeted by Zoe Backstedt.
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Then came 2025. She describes a season where she finished 29th in her first race and 29th in her last. She spent every race hanging on at the back, quietly wondering whether the team had made a mistake picking her. What changed for 2026 was not training. It was deciding she deserved to be there. She won on 30 April, won again on 1 May, and pulled on the leader's jersey.
She is also clear about what is still missing. The World Tour team has a mental coach. Her development team does not, so she has been building her own sports psychology out of podcasts. She is also sharp on why girls do not take up cycling in the first place. There was no women's racing on television when she was young, and there is still a belief that you need to spend tens of thousands of dollars before you can start.
Emily Dixon rides for Canyon//SRAM Generation. This episode was recorded just before the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift.
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