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Yorkshire ready for World Cup Weekend!
Story published: Wednesday, 10 March 2010
The football World Cup is not the only World Cup happening this year. The final details of Yorkshire’s own World Cup at Dalby Forest - the UCI Mountain Bike Cross-Country World Cup - have just been released.
From 23rd – 25th April the best mountain bikers in the world will descend on Pickering and Dalby Forest for a weekend of high class cycling competition in Yorkshire’s Great Forest. It is the first time the World Cup has been held in Yorkshire.
Gary Verity, chief executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, said: “The World Cup will be an exhilarating weekend of world class racing on the doorstep of the North York Moors. I am sure participants and cycling fans from across the country will be inspired by both the high calibre of the course as well as the landscape, facilities and warm welcome they will receive. We look forward to a great weekend of mountain biking and I am sure cycling fans from across the county will come out in support of our very own World Cup.”
• The weekend will start with a sprint road race around Pickering town centre on the evening of
Friday 23rd April. A route that will include a dash through the bar of the Station Hotel! The Pro Sprint Eliminator will involve over 100 riders battling for a big cash prize before Pickering town centre entertains spectators for the rest of the evening.
•
Saturday 24th April’s action will begin with the Junior World Cup for 16-18 year olds followed by ‘Dalby Dare’ where the public will have an opportunity to challenge the World Cup course ahead of elite riders. Nearly 400 people will be able to test their skills and compare their time against the pro riders the next day.
• The weekend will come to a climax on
Sunday 25th April with four hours of thrilling racing on the brand new Dalby course in the Elite Men’s and Women’s World Cup events. The course has been designed so spectators will be able to watch every aspect of the action up close from a number of great vantage points.
In addition to the weekend's exciting Mountain Biking programme, there will be a bike and tourism exposition, bike retailer points of sale and a number of food and drink stalls. There will also be a British Cycling stand, a Go-Ride zone, where children can pick up racing skills, and mountain bike fans will be able to get up close to the team technical areas where they can watch riders and support staff at work behind the scenes.
An adult weekend pass costs £13.50 or a family weekend pass (two adults and up to four children) costs £40 which can be purchased from www.ticketmaster.co.uk or by calling 0844 847 2387.
Jonny Clay, British Cycling’s Cycle Sport and Membership Director, said:
“We are really excited about the plans we have in place for the weekend. The World Cup is intended to be thrilling and entertaining but is only one aspect of what will be an inspirational few days for those who make the journey to Yorkshire.”
“By staging elite level events such as this World Cup and developing world-class facilities such as the Dalby Forest course, we are providing future generations of cyclists in Britain with opportunities to compete for international glory at World and Olympic level on home turf”
Welcome to Yorkshire worked in close partnership with British Cycling, UK Sport, Yorkshire Forward and the Forestry Commission, with the support of a number of local partners including Ryedale Council and North Yorkshire County Council, to deliver the event. Yorkshire Forward led the region in the bidding process to host the event from British Cycling, and has contributed £200k of funding into the course.
Members of British Cycling are entitled to a 10% discount on tickets. Day and weekend passes are available for purchase via
www.ticketmaster.co.uk or by calling
0844 847 2387. For more information please visit
www.yorkshiremtbworldcup.co.uk or for accommodation ideas visit
www.yorkshire.com.
-ENDS-
Editors’ Notes:
• Welcome to Yorkshire is the official tourism body for Yorkshire, working to grow the region’s visitor economy.
• Welcome to Yorkshire is funded by Yorkshire Forward, the Regional Development Agency charged with improving the Yorkshire and Humber economy.
• Key facts include:
- Tourism in Yorkshire is worth £6.5 billion annually
- The region’s industry employs a quarter of a million people
- There are 209 million visits to Yorkshire each year
British Cycling is the national governing body for cycling in the UK whose aim is to inspire participation in cycling as a sport, recreation and sustainable transport through achieving worldwide success. It governs all cycling disciplines and is funded by membership, UK Sport and Sport England. With British Sky Broadcasting, its principal partner, British Cycling has the shared aim of getting one million more people cycling regularly by 2013. In 2008 the GB Cycling Team brought home 34 medals from the Beijing Olympic and Paralympic Games, prompting a new wave of interest in cycling and focusing the nation's hopes on London 2012. British Cycling celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2009.
Press Office contacts:
Andy Denton – Press Officer – Welcome to Yorkshire
Email: adenton@yorkshire.com
Direct Line: 0113 322 3537
Mobile: 07855 812094
Peter Maxwell - Press Officer – British Cycling
Email:
petermaxwell@britishcycling.org.uk
Direct Line: 0161 274 2116
Mobile: 07920 407 754
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