McMullen Scores 3 x Gold Medals

Virginia's Blue Ridge TWENTY28 Athlete Rylee McMullen's Journey to representing Australia

In July last year I made the big decision to use my dual citizenship to switch cycling nationalities. I had ridden for NZ since I started cycling at 20, first pulling on the national team jersey at 22. The decision came from feeling lost in a system that wasn’t creating opportunities, and a closing window of support.

The move to Adelaide, Australia at the end of 2025 has been really hard. I knew it wouldn’t be easy, but nothing quite fell into place. I felt far away from my support system and, for the first time in my career, like I was doing it alone. I overtrained trying to make sure I arrived in good form, and ended up doing the opposite—everything fell apart in December. I was emotional and really struggling with the move, and I started to question whether I’d made the right decision.

I took some time off the bike over Christmas and spent some much-needed time with my family. It wasn’t ideal timing, but I couldn’t keep going the way I was. That break turned out to be exactly what I needed—a good reminder that rest is a critical part of training and the process.

Oceanias came around quickly after that, and I knew my fitness wasn’t where I wanted it to be. I raced hard and smart and came away with a couple of podiums, but was still disappointed knowing what I could have done with better preparation.

Australian Track Nationals were my final chance this summer to prove to myself that this is where I belong, and that the rollercoaster of the last five months was worth it.

Individual Pursuit

My achilles heel. I want to be good at it, but me and the IP don’t quite vibe. It’s technical and controlled, yet a maximal, painful effort. I tend to go out too hard and struggle with pacing. It’s a clear focus area for me this year—something I know is a weakness, but I’m fully committed to improving. The result isn’t worth noting, but there were some big learnings from this nationals.

Team Pursuit

The biggest focus each Olympic cycle, and the event you need to be strong in if you want a shot at the team. Riding for South Australia means being part of one of the strongest pools of team pursuit riders in the country. I rode the qualifying round, with another rider stepping in for the final. We came away with the national title—my first under Australia.

Scratch Race National Champion

Elimination

The unforgiving race where you can’t make mistakes. I rode well… until I didn’t. One moment of complacency and I was out early, finishing 8th. It’s always frustrating to go out when you still feel strong, but elimination is just as mental as it is physical—you have to be sharp the whole way through.

Scratch

Raced under state teams, with a clear plan to make it hard and aggressive. An opportunity opened early and I went all in off the front, hitting some PB power numbers and committing fully to gaining a lap. I got the lap within the first half of the race to take the virtual lead. Only one other rider (my teammate) managed to lap the field. She did an incredible job leading me out in the final laps and put me in the perfect position to take the win. Really grateful for the team effort behind that one.

Gold - Rylee MCMULLEN Virginia's Blue Ridge TWENTY28/ (SA) +1 Lap

Silver Maeve PLOUFFE (SA)+1 Lap

Bronze - Sophie EDWARDS (SA)

4.Keira WILL (NSW)

5.Claudia MARCKS (ACT)

6.Leani VAN DER BERG (SA)

7.Alyssa POLITES (VIC)

8.Odette LYNCH (SA)

9.Nicole DUNCAN (NSW)

10.Anna DUBIER (NSW)

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Points Race National Champion

Points Race

My favourite race, and the one I really wanted. I knew I had good legs and committed early to every sprint to pick up points, then took three laps throughout the race. The final lap came with just two laps to go, which sealed the win without needing the final sprint.

Three gold medals and three national titles this week is more than I could have imagined. We live for the process, but when the outcome comes together like this, it makes it even sweeter.

Summer is done and it’s time to head back to my Twenty28 teammates for the season. The focus remains LA 2028—but with the understanding that if a system doesn’t create opportunity, I’ll create my own.

Gold - Rylee MCMULLEN Virginia's Blue Ridge TWENTY28/ (SA) 76Pts

Silver - Sophie EDWARDS (SA) 70

Bronze - Keira WILL (NSW) 56

4. Maeve PLOUFFE (SA) 45

5. Leani VAN DER BERG (SA) 40

6. Alyssa POLITES (VIC) 38

7. Odette LYNCH (SA) 34

8. Anna DUBIER (NSW) 24

9. Claudia MARCKS (ACT) 9

10.Madeleine WASSERBAECH (SA) 7