Cyclocross Global Championship will be hosted in the USA for the second time

It has always been customary to hold the World Tournament in cyclocross in European territories such as Belgium, France, Italy, the Netherlands. The International Cycling Union decided in the early 2000s that it was necessary to expand the geography of the cycling Tournament. The United States of America was chosen as such a country for priority expansion.

2013 marked the start of geographical cycling discoveries

2013 declared the period of radical changes. At the time of this period, inicial cyclocross global contest outside of Europe was held in the USA in early February. The location that hosted the sporting event was Louisville, Kentucky. Since in those years only four heat qualifications were included in the entire Championship, with no under-23 women’s qualification and women’s elite cycling events, the USA hosted four cycling races.

Initially, according to tradition, the races should stretch over two days – Saturday and Monday. However, in the United States that year there was a problem with possible natural flooding due to the overflow of the river, which is typical for the period of early February in Kentucky. The International Union decided to make one-time changes and hold all four racing qualifications on the same day – on Saturday.

American tracks in 2022 again filled with cyclists

This year the Global Cyclocross Contest was hosted in Arkansas in Fayetteville. It lasted the traditional two days – Saturday and Sunday and included the generally accepted six qualifying races – the elite for male and female, junior men and women (under 18) and the rank of men and women under 23 years of age. In general, despite the different geographical territory of the Championship, all the main requirements and conditions were retained.

The two days of the Tournament themselves are just a part of the huge global contest. It is not for nothing that the Cyclocross World Championship is held at the beginning of the year, at the beginning of the season, because this cycling event marks the start of the entire cycling season.

This World Championship is primarily hosted with the aim of bringing together peoples from various locations in one territory and gathering them under common interests. And also, this is a great opportunity for athletes to compete for their countries and represent them on their behalf.

The American bike track is on par with the usual European ones

In 2022, a wonderful location was chosen for the Global Cyclocross Contest – Centennial Park, which is located on the track near the mountains. This park was specially built so that its tracks could be used for bicycle races. From the very beginning, the choice of such a place seemed rather unusual, since, according to tradition, cyclo-cross races are usually hosted on flat areas or on fields around which special fences are being built.

In the case of the Centennial Park, this track starts with an asphalt straight road, where the clear favorites of the competition can immediately demonstrate their speed and skills. But the athletes did not have to rejoice for long, because such a flat road was followed by steep grassy turns that end in a very steep climb, the slope of which the organizers declare about 20%.

A successful Championship proves that there are no limits

After passing such a route, cyclists will be sure that nothing is impossible for them anymore. And the International Cycling Union, after the opening of the 2022 season and the successful holding of the Championship in the United States of America, was once again convinced that everything that is difficult is possible. The main goal – expanding the geographical boundaries of cycling is moving in the right direction, which all athletes will continue to strive for.