First-year World Cup venue considered a success, hopes to host again
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Fans turned out in their thousands at Dalby to witness the action(Image credit: British Cycling)
The Pro Sprint Eliminator in Pickering kicked off the weekend in style(Image credit: British Cycling)
Under 23 racer Annie Last crosses the line after a stirring effort in the women's elite race.(Image credit: British Cycling)
Nino Schurter (Scott Swisspower) celebrates his World Cup win in Dalby Forest.(Image credit: British Cycling)
Worry Gill was a fantastic place to watch the action(Image credit: British Cycling)
"What a finish!" - Nino Schurter pips Julien Absalon on the line(Image credit: British Cycling)
Irina Kalentieva shows her joy after victory in the women's elite race(Image credit: British Cycling)
The new mountain bike World Cup venue at Dalby Forest in the United Kingdom drew over 11,000 visitors during the weekend of April 23-25, according to organizers.
The course was designed to facilitate spectator access. Fans had easy access to the course including hot spots like Medusa's Drop and Worry Gill, only a few minutes' walk from the event village and the hustle and bustle of the busy trade and tech areas.
"This inaugural (World Cup) event has been everything we could have hoped for. The response of the public, the teams, the UCI, and all our key partners has been overwhelmingly positive and even the Yorkshire weather was great over the weekend!" said Jonny Clay, Cycle Sport and Membership Director at British Cycling.
History was made as the thousands of spectators watched the World Cup series closest-ever finish bring down the curtain on three days of action in Yorkshire. Nino Schurter (Scott Swisspower) was the victor in a nail-biting sprint finish with Julien Absalon (Orbea) in the men's elite race. In a similarly exciting women's race, World Champion Irina Kalentieva (Topeak Ergon) won by just 11 seconds over American Willow Koerber (Subaru-Gary Fisher), who put in a career-best performance.
"Pickering on Friday was a fascinating spectacle, Saturday allowed the public to ride the World Cup course in Dalby Dare and we had Annie Last and Steve James collect bronze medals in their races, whilst the elite racing on Sunday captured everything great about cross country mountain biking," said Clay, highlighting the performances of Britain's up and coming riders.
The fate of the Dably event seemed uncertain in the weeks leading up to the event when volcanic ash cancelled the flight plans of many top contenders. Fortunately, the spread of the ash diminished in time to enable competitors to complete their trips there eventually, albeit with some unusual travel intineraries.
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Sue George is an editor at Cyclingnews. She coordinates all of the site's mountain bike race coverage and assists with the road, 'cross and track coverage.
