The general routes in Belgium for the 2024 UCI Gravel World Championships have been revealed by organisers, Golazo, on Tuesday, with elite girls masking 133km on hilly terrain throughout the province of Flemish Brabant on Saturday, October 5. The next day, the elite males’s class will race 179km on the identical route, with further passes on a Leuven circuit.
Halle will host the beginning for all elite races and age-specific divisions. The routes comply with a brief 10km loop to the northwest after which traverse 80km for a primary move by means of the end space at Leuven.
Circuits will take within the Forests of Brabant, considered one of 4 nationwide parks within the nation. Relying on the class, riders will conclude with one or two extra native laps in Leuven.
A common route map has been offered by organisers with estimates that gravel, cobblestones and unpaved surfaces comprise roughly 61% of the trail. Particulars about climbs, personal domains and delicate nature areas will likely be disclosed at a later date.
Final yr’s battles for rainbow stripes topped Kasia Niewiadoma (Poland) because the elite girls’s champion after 140km of racing and Matej Mohorič (Slovenia) because the elite males’s champion on a 169km course.
“This space is a real paradise for many who love gravel roads, monumental bushes and difficult climbs on roads that reduce deep into the panorama,” organisers famous in a press launch.
Along with spectator viewing in Halle and Leuven, official fan zones will likely be arrange alongside the route, some areas offering live-action video on large screens.
“A number of viewing areas can even be arrange alongside the course, in cooperation with the assorted municipalities concerned. The goal is to centralise spectators as a lot as attainable in the very best spots for watching the riders, whereas minimising the burden on the Forests of Brabant. “There will likely be a Gravel Expo providing the most recent gravel merchandise and bikes in the midst of the fan zone in Leuven,” stated Christophe Impens head of biking at Golazo.
A lot of the route was used final yr for the inaugural UEC European Gravel Championships and Belgian Gravel Championships, and the area additionally hosted the 2021 UCI Highway World Championships. The passage from west to east by means of the Forests of Brabant needs to be the identical. Golazo will work with native businesses and companions to “optimally shield nature’s worth” to help sustainability initiatives.
“We’re elaborating an intensive Sustainability Plan. A key component within the Sustainability Plan is mobility. Halle and Leuven each supply the best infrastructure to allow folks to come back and benefit from the Bolero UCI Gravel World Championships by public transport. Each the beginning and end are inside strolling distance of a practice station, and there’s additionally a direct connection between the 2 host cities,” stated Impens.
Qualification for the third version of the UCI Gravel World Championships proceed with nationwide champions, continental championships, nationwide staff choices in addition to high 25% in classes from one of many 25 occasions that make up the Trek UCI Gravel World Sequence.
