Kinning Cycles is pleased to bring to you Ireland’s first ever UCI International Cyclocross Race, the inaugural Bioracer Atlassian International Cyclocross. The event to be held in Belfast on October 7th, 2018, is also supported by co-sponsors McKinley Contracts.
This unique event comes at a seminal moment for Irish cyclocross, as the sport becomes increasingly popular across the island with a continually larger turnout at races nationwide.
The Bioracer – Atlassian International Cyclocross is a UCI C2 event which is sure to attract a unique selection of quality international ranked racers from the world of cyclocross: riders from the USA, Italy France as well as the best of the Irish, are set to make the trip to Belfast to get their hands of these coveted UCI points!
Equal Prize Funds for Men and Women
With a prize fund of nearly 4000 Euro, the Bioracer – Atlassian International Cyclocross can claim to have one of largest pot of any single day race in Ireland and will be equally spread between categories, with women and men receiving identical prize money.
Mallusk: a course trialled and tested
Just a stone’s throw from Belfast city, Mallusk has already been the host of the Ulster Cyclocross Championships and as the local racers would say, has plenty to offer in terms of challenging features: off-camber sections, steps and fast straights.
“Why can’t we have a UCI race?”
The idea for the Bioracer – Atlassian International Cyclocross came up earlier this year, from a conversation between International rider Glenn Kinning and Andy Layhe, Cycling Ireland Cyclocross Coordinator.
“Driving to the last World Championships, myself and Glenn saw no reason why we couldn’t organise a bigger event in Ireland, because it seemed like a natural progression reflecting the huge growth of the sport back home.” said Layhe.
“I take my hat off to Glenn for organising so many events through the season alongside his own racing – if it were not for committed people like Glenn the scene wouldn’t be where it is today.”
An event welcomed by the UCI
The progression of Irish Cyclocross has been noticed as far as the UCI headquarters, by UCI Head of Off-Road and Deputy Sports Director Peter Van den Abeele, who observed the largest ever Irish squad to take part in the World Championships. He commented:
“It is great to have a UCI cyclocross event taking place in Ireland for the first time. I thank Glenn Kinning – athlete, coach and event organiser – and his team for taking on the challenge of hosting an international event. This addition to the UCI International Calendar is in line with the continued globalisation of the cyclocross discipline, which is reaching an ever-increasing number of countries outside the traditional cyclocross nations. I have no doubt that the BioRacer Atlassian International Cyclocross will delight the spectators and provide a magnificent showcase for our sport. I wish everyone racing in Mallusk, Belfast, the best of luck.”
Schedule
The full scheduled is yet to be finalised, but will include a series of supporting events such as a Under 14, Under 16, B non-UCI support race, Masters 40 an 50 events prior to the official UCI races.
Contact us
The organisers would like to acknowledge and thank the passionate cyclocross community who have assisted in donating to a Crowdfunding page that was set up to help raise funds for the event. The £1000 fund target was met in just 7 days.
Details of the crowdfunding page can be found here: https://www.gofundme.com/international-cyclocross-race-irl
The organisers look forward to welcoming everyone to the event which is sure to generate a great atmosphere and some exciting racing.
A dedicated web page for the event will be live soon. If you or your company would like to be involved or require more information, contact us:
info@kinningcycles.com
0044(0)2890 589 589
