MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT
Dear Members,
First of all, I would like to wish each and every one of you a Happy New Year. With the Tokyo Olympic Games and Paralympic Games plus our many UCI World Championships and World Cups, 2020 is shaping up to be a very busy year for cycling. I am excited to work with you all to ensure these events, and our sport in general, are a huge success.
On the Olympic theme, I was in Lausanne on 10 January for the 135th International Olympic Committee (IOC) Session during which I intervened, as President of the IOC Esports and Gaming Liaison Group, on the opportunities this new trend presents for the Olympic Movement. The following week, I participated in a meeting of the IOC Athletes’ Entourage Commission, of which I am a member.
In between, it was a great pleasure to welcome Rwanda’s Ambassador in Switzerland, Mrs Marie Chantal Rwakazina, to the UCI Headquarters in Aigle. As you know, the Rwandan capital Kigali has submitted an official application – as has Morocco – to host the 2025 UCI Road World Championships in a bid to become the first African nation to organise our leading annual UCI event. Obviously, this was at the centre of my discussions with Mrs Rwakazina, who was Mayor of Kigali before her appointment to Switzerland.
This newsletter is going out as the men’s professional peloton embarks on the first UCI WorldTour event of the year, the Santos Tour Down Under. I am delighted to be able to follow the third stage of 131km between Unley and Paracombe. Everyone is aware that Australia has been suffering greatly from devastating fires, and our thoughts are with all those affected. My thanks go to the organisers of the Santos Tour Down Under who closely monitored the situation to ensure that the health and safety of the riders and all involved in the event would not be compromised.
While in Adelaide, I will also attend the annual Congress of the Oceania Cycling Confederation, presided over by my UCI Management Committee colleague Tracey Gaudry.
Our first UCI World Championships of the year take place in Milton, Canada: the 2020 Para-cycling Track World Championships from 30 January to 2 February. This will be a particularly hard-fought competition as the athletes put the finishing touches to their qualification campaigns for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics. Meanwhile the world’s best cyclo-cross specialists will gather in Dübendorf, Switzerland, for the 2020 Cyclo-cross World Championships, on 1 and 2 February. After a stunning season of UCI World Cup racing, I look forward to seeing which athletes will be crowned UCI World Champion in this discipline.
Before the cyclo-cross racing begins, I will join my fellow members of the UCI Management Committee for our meeting in Dübendorf on 30 and 31 January. This is always a perfect opportunity to start off the New Year collectively and in a spirit of cooperation. You will of course be informed of any major initiatives and decisions approved by the UCI Management Committee.
I look forward to continuing our collaboration throughout 2020.
David Lappartient
UCI President
UCI NEWS
Professional Cycling Council and UCI Management Committee meetings in Dübendorf (Switzerland)
The Professional Cycling Council meeting will be held on 29 January in Dübendorf, Switzerland, followed by the first UCI Management Committee meeting of 2020 on 30 and 31 January. A special edition of the UCI Newsletter will be published on 11 February following the decisions taken at the UCI Management Committee. These meetings will be held prior to the 2020 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships.
Rwanda Cycling Federation welcomes new President
Mr Murenzi Abdallah was recently appointed President of the Rwanda Cycling Federation. Under his presidency, the Federation will continue to promote and develop cycling in the country. We wish him the very best in his new endeavours.
UCI Solidarity Programme 2020
The first submission period for the 2020 UCI Solidarity Programme is now closed. The projects will now undergo an internal review, before being presented at the Presidents’ Conference and subsequently submitted to the UCI Management Committee for approval at its meeting in Dübendorf, Switzerland, at the end of January.
The decisions concerning the UCI Solidarity Programme projects submitted will be communicated to the Continental Confederations and National Federations in February 2020.
In the meantime, should you have any queries, please contact the International Relations Services ( <mailto:internationalrelations@uci.ch> internationalrelations@uci.ch).
Discover the 2019 UCI Yearbook
The 2019 UCI Yearbook, “Cycling 2019”, has been published and every National Federation will have received a copy recently.
This volume of carefully-selected photographs which shines the spotlight on the different disciplines governed by the UCI – road, track, mountain bike, BMX Racing, BMX Freestyle, cyclo-cross, trials and indoor cycling – pays tribute to the champions who personify cycling today, provides a retrospective of the sporting year and gives us an opportunity to relive the moments of emotion that marked the last 12 months.
The 2019 UCI Yearbook can be viewed on the UCI website or, for the printed version, ordered at the price of 40 CHF (plus postage). To order your printed copy, please contact communication@uci.ch with your postal address. This offer is valid while stocks last.
SPORTS
ROAD
2020 UCI Road World Championships, Aigle-Martigny: team accommodation
The UCI and the Local Organising Committee recommends that National Federations book hotels early for the 2020 UCI Road World Championships.
The Local Organising Committee have reserved rooms in hotels situated within 30km to 60km from Martigny. The rooms for these hotels will be held until 15 February 2020 only.
Please contact the “Association hôtelière du Valais” via email: info@vs-hotel.ch for all your 2020 UCI Road World Championships hotel requirements.
2020 season UCI Teams‘ registration
In addition to the 19 UCI WorldTeams, the 19 UCI ProTeams and the eight UCI Women’s WorldTeams, 194 UCI Continental Teams and 49 UCI Women’s Continental Teams, hailing from all five continents, have requested to be registered for the 2020 season.
Registration was conducted for the second consecutive year via the UCI DataRide – Teams platform. Before thinking to implement further development, this year the focus was made on adapting the system to the new regulations and enhancing its stability. We would like to take this opportunity to thank the Teams and National Federations for their collaboration.
We would kindly ask National Federations registering a team to check that all tasks are validated by the UCI on the UCI DataRide platform and if these are not validated, to provide the necessary corrections to ensure the process can be completed.
We remind all stakeholders that the UCI website should be consulted prior to all events in order to perform all the required checks. With this in mind, we invite all teams and National Federations to check that all the information relating to teams and their members is correct on the UCI website. We would ask that any issues be reported to road@uci.ch.
TRACK
2019-2020 Tissot UCI Track Cycling World Cup
The sixth and final round of the 2019-2020 Tissot UCI Track Cycling World Cup will take place this week, on 24-26 January, in Milton (Canada).
Special Bonuses
Introduced for the first time during the 2017-2019 season, the top three men and women riders of the season in the sprint, keirin, Omnium and the top three men and women teams in the Madison, will be awarded the following bonuses:
* Winner of the 2019-2020 Tissot UCI Track Cycling World Cup: CHF 10,000
* 2nd in the final overall rankings: CHF 6,000
* 3rd in the final overall rankings: CHF 2,000
These bonuses will be awarded following the final round of the season, based on the final rankings of the specialties listed above.
2020 UCI Track Cycling World Championships presented by Tissot – Berlin (Germany)
Establishment of quotas: Sunday 26 January 2020
The qualification quotas for the 2020 UCI Track Cycling World Championships presented by Tissot will be determined on Sunday 26 January 2020, following the final round of the 2019-2020 Tissot UCI Track Cycling World Cup.
Deadline for exemption requests: Wednesday 29 January 2020
All exemption requests relating to the UCI World Championships must be sent to <mailto:track@uci.ch> track@uci.ch before Wednesday 29 January 2020. Exemptions will not be granted after this date.
Publication of quotas
Quotas will be announced on the UCI website on 3 February 2020.
Additional quotas for Continental Champions and UCI World Champions will also be announced on the UCI website, in accordance with articles 9.2.025, 9.2.026, 9.2.027 and 9.2.027bis.
Registration: from Monday 3 February 2020 to Sunday 16 February 2020
The online registration of riders taking part in the 2020 UCI Track Cycling World Championships presented by Tissot must be completed using the UCI’s online registration system between Monday 3 February 2020 and Sunday 16 February 2020 at midday (CET) at the latest.
Reallocation of unused quotas: Tuesday 18 February 2020
We urge National Federations who do not wish to use their quotas to inform the UCI as quickly as possible by writing to track@uci.ch so that we may notify reserve nations. Unused quotas will be automatically reallocated to reserve nations on 18 February 2020, without the National Federation in question being requested to provide confirmation. The first five reserve nations are listed in the quota table (R1, R2, R3, R4 and R5).
Staff accreditation
Each National Federation taking part should register all members of their delegation using the accreditation registration system before midday (CET) 16 February 2020.
The same login and password must be used for the two online registration systems (rider registration and accreditations).
The number of accreditations provided will be tailored to the number of athletes taking part at the World Championships. Further information can be found in the registration procedure document, which is available here.
Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games: test event (CL1)
The test event has been extended by one day and will now take place between 10 and 12 April 2020.
The competition schedule is available here.
2020-2021 UCI Track Nations’ Cup
More detailed information on the 2020-2021 UCI Track Nations Cup will be provided early this year. A Nations’ Forum will also be held on 25 February 2020, as part of the 2020 UCI Track Cycling World Championships presented by Tissot in Berlin. Taking place at the velodrome, the event starts at 18.30 CET.
2020-2021 UCI International Track Calendar: registration form and instructions
National Federations must complete registration forms for the 2020-2021 UCI International Track Calendar and send them to <mailto:track@uci.ch> track@uci.ch. With the registration deadline of 15 December 2019 having now passed, a late registration fee may be charged.
All the documents are available on the UCI extranet.
2020-2021 UCI Track Teams: registration via UCI DataRide
Registration of UCI Track Teams for the 2020-2021 season must be completed using the UCI DataRide platform.
The UCI DataRide registration system opened on Friday 1 November. The closing date has yet to be confirmed and will be extended in line with the calendar for the 2020-2021 season, which has been extended to October 2021.
New teams should contact track@uci.ch to request their UCI DataRide registration login and password.
MOUNTAIN BIKE
2020 Mercedes-Benz UCI Mountain Bike World Cup
Information on the 2020 Mercedes-Benz UCI Mountain Bike World Cup will be published regularly on the UCI website. Please make sure you check it for official schedules and deadlines related to the series following this link.
We remind you that you must book your team/national federation area to each Mercedes-Benz UCI Mountain Bike World Cup organiser via a form available on each organisers’ website at least one month before the event.
National Federations requesting Rainbow Passes (season long accreditation for the 2020 Mercedes-Benz UCI Mountain Bike World Cup season) have to request these directly from the UCI (offroad@uci.ch) by no later than 10 February 2020. Every National Federation is entitled to six Rainbow Passes. We kindly ask you to indicate if a split is required between Cross-country and Downhill.
BMX RACING
2020 UCI BMX Supercross World Cup
National Federations are reminded that the competition guides for the first two UCI BMX Supercross World Cup events of 2020 are published on the UCI website.
Likewise, the registration deadlines for all events in the 2020 UCI BMX Supercross World Cup events have been published. They are available in the same location as above.
CYCLO-CROSS
2020 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships
The 2020 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships will take place in Dübendorf (SUI) on 1 and 2 February 2020.
You will find all the useful information related to this event on the UCI website:
* In the Competition guide, you can find information such as official program, course maps, rider’s registration, accreditation, event’s regulations, etc.
* Online Rider’s Registration system will be open from 16 January 2020 to 24 January 2020 (12:00 CET). The riders’ registration for this event can only be made by the National Federation.
* Online Accreditation system will close on 20 January 2020 at 12:00 CET.
2020-2021 UCI Cyclo-cross International Calendar
The 2020-2021 UCI Cyclo-cross International Calendar will be published on the UCI website after the validation of the UCI Management Committee at its meeting on 30-31 January 2020.
2019-2020 Telenet UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup
The final round of the 2019-2020 Telenet UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup will take place in Hoogerheide (NED) on 26 January 2020.
PARA-CYCLING
2020 UCI Para-cycling Track World Championships
The Para-cycling Track World Championships will take place from 30 January to 2 February 2020 in Milton (Canada). Registration for the event is now closed and the entry list has been published on the UCI website.
A total of 169 athletes from 32 countries will take part in this event, which will, for the first time, officially host the Para Omnium for C1 to C5 sport classes, as well as the Mixed Tandem Team Sprint.
The classification schedule as well as the official training schedule are also available on the UCI website.
Coordinateur Paracyclisme et Consultant Classifications
L’UCI est à la recherche d’un (ou d’une) coordinateur(trice) à plein temps et un (une) consultant(e) à 50 % pour renforcer son Département des Sports.
Le Coordinateur Paracyclisme aura pour mission de planifier, d’organiser et de superviser l’ensemble des activités reliées au sport ainsi qu’aux événements de la discipline. Quant au Consultant Classifications, il (elle) dirigera et sera responsable de l’administration, de la coordination et de la réalisation de la classification para-cycliste.
Le détail du cahier des charges des domaines d’activités des deux postes se trouvent disponibles ici.
INDOOR
2019 UCI Cycle-ball World Cup
The 2019 UCI Cycle-ball World Cup season will conclude with the final on 18 January 2020 in Möhlin (SUI). Ten teams from five different nations (GER, AUT, SUI, JPN, FRA) will be competing. More information regarding the final can be found on the local organiser’s website.
2020 UCI Cycle-ball World Cup
The 2020 UCI Cycle-ball World Cup season will begin on 4 April in Winterthur, Switzerland.
The calendar for the upcoming season is available on the UCI website.
2020 UCI Artistic Cycling World Cup
The 2020 UCI Artistic Cycling World Cup season will begin on 29 February in Koblach, Austria.
The calendar for the upcoming season is available on the UCI website.
CYCLING FOR ALL
Promoting global Cycling for All events and initiatives
With the start of the new year, the UCI is looking to share news of cycling for all initiatives and events to be developed by our National Federations in 2020. Do you have any projects or actions designed to get more people cycling? To give children the chance to ride? Or advocate for more cycling or better road safety?
If you have any initiatives focused on encouraging more cycling in all forms, please do not hesitate to reach out to the UCI Cycling for All team (CyclingForAll@uci.ch), as we will be able to help you promote your projects on our website, within our network and via social media.
Resources to support Cycling for All initiatives
The UCI is pleased to remind all National Federations that several resources are at your disposal to help you plan and deliver Cycling for All projects in 2020. The Cycling for All documents section on the UCI website allows you to access the following tools and resources
* Children’s Cycling Education Programmes toolkit: Developed in partnership with The Bikeability Trust to provide support and guidance for the creation of cycle training programmes for children.
* Cycling for All Side Events toolkit: Contains case studies and recommendations for National Federations and race organisers interested in staging side events for the wider population that encourage cycling in all forms.
* “Cycling: Danish solutions” digital platform: Developed with the Cycling Embassy of Denmark, this online database seeks to share best practices and knowledge on cycling from one of the world’s leading cycling nations: Denmark.
These tools provide practical steps, case studies and examples to help National Federations and their partners grow and promote cycling.
OLYMPIC GAMES
Officially in an Olympic year, this month we take a look at one of our Olympic cycling disciplines: track cycling. track has featured in all but one of the modern Olympic Games.
Track at the Olympics: key facts
Olympic Debut: 1896
Events: team sprint, team pursuit, sprint, keirin, Omnium (All Men and Women)
The beginnings
The first track races were held in the late nineteenth century, partly as a winter training activity. The first World Championships were held in 1895.
Olympic history
Track cycling was included in the programme of the first modern Olympic Games in Athens 1896. The programme featured five events for Men, including a 12-hour race. Only two competitors completed the event, with an early lap gain winning the gold for Adolf Schmal (AUT). Paul Masson (FRA) won three events including the sprint.
The Men’s sprint event has appeared in 25 of the 27 modern editions of the Olympic Games, and the Men’s team pursuit made its debut in 1908.
Women’s track cycling made its first appearance in the Games of Seoul 1988, growing to its current quota of five events in 2012.
Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games
In 2017, the IOC agreed to add the Madison to the Programme of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. The Men’s Madison had been on the Olympic programme in 2000, 2004 and 2008. 2020 will see the first female to win an Olympic medal in this event.
Named after legendary races organised at Madison Square Garden in New York (USA), the Madison is a dynamic, exciting and technically demanding track cycling event, which requires excellent bike handling skills, balance, strategic capability, observation and tactics. The Madison will appear on the Olympic Programme with both men’s and women’s races and two new Olympic gold medals to be won on the track.
Only 184 days to go until the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games
EQUIPMENT
To guarantee sporting fairness at the next Olympic Games, the UCI must ensure that the equipment use does not provide a competitive advantage. The commercial availability of the equipment is in itself a guarantee. A registration procedure has therefore been put in place for track equipment.
The registration process went smoothly at the end of 2019. The Equipment Unit travelled to the first four rounds of the Tissot UCI Track World Cup 2019-2020 to meet the different nations. Over 600 pieces of equipment were presented.
A list of the registered equipment or of equipment in the registration phase was shared on the National Federations’ Extranet in December 2019. The list is therefore available to the National Federations and will be regularly updated according to the conformity of the equipment with UCI regulations (starting from end of 2019, mainly in terms of commercialisation).
At the next Olympic Games, the Equipment Unit will check that the equipment used in competition is on the authorised equipment list.
COMMISSAIRES
International Commissaire Courses
Two International Commissaire courses, for the trials and road disciplines respectively, will be organised by the UCI in 2020. The application process for these courses will open soon and applicants must fulfil the conditions outlined in article 1.1.054 of the UCI Regulations.
Letters inviting the submission of applications will be sent directly to the respective National Federations:
* For trials: National Federations, which have hosted international trials events in the last three years;
* For road: National Federations, which have provided training for road Elite National Commissaires. Please note that an International Commissaire course is also planned in 2021. Submission of applications for 2020 and 2021 will be open jointly this year following the same process.
National BMX Freestyle Park Judge Training Seminar
The UCI is to organise its second training seminar for National BMX Freestyle Park Judges in Lisbon, Portugal, on 14-15 March 2020. The objective of this seminar is to introduce participants to the latest developments in the BMX Freestyle Park discipline, as well as its international calendar and its regulations. The seminar is open to representatives of the BMX Freestyle community who are familiar with the Park discipline, for example, current or ex-riders with an interest in becoming a judge. The role of BMX Freestyle judges is to assess the performances of all of the riders in the competition by delivering a numerical score corresponding to the quality of each rider’s performance. To learn how to do this, a practical knowledge of BMX Freestyle riding techniques is essential to succeed in the seminar and to then successfully judge BMX freestyle competitions.
Places are limited; the final selection will therefore be made based on the applications received. Applications may only be submitted by the National Federations via this link before 10 February 2020. All additional information will be communicated directly to the registered candidates and their National Federations.
ANTI-DOPING
Publication of the 2020 List of Prohibited Substances and Methods coming into force on 1st January 2020
The 2020 List of Prohibited Substances and Methods came into force on 1 January 2020.
The List established by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and incorporated in the UCI Anti-Doping Rules, designates what substances and methods are prohibited both in- and out-of-competition.
Please ensure that all stakeholders, and in particular your riders and their entourage are aware of the publication of the new 2020 List and of the changes made by consulting it online.
To view the changes made in the 2020 List of Prohibited Substances and Methods as compared to the 2019 version, please consult the 2020 Summary of Major Modifications and Explanatory Notes.
While, ultimately, the athlete is responsible for knowing what substances and methods are on the List and for the substances present in his or her body, we must ensure we do everything we can in this regard to help keep them clean.
Anti-Doping Education online course ALPHA
On 1 January 2020, a new article 18.5 was introduced into the UCI Anti-Doping Regulations, stipulating that International Federations must make every effort to ensure that riders to whom they have issued a licence successfully complete the ALPHA eLearning Anti-Doping Education Course within four months of receiving the licence.
To successfully complete the ALPHA course, riders must pass a final exam at the end of the course and obtain a final score of at least 80%. Riders are not limited in the number of attempts. This means that they have the opportunity to retake the final exam if they fail to achieve the required 80%.
The course is available in English, French, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Slovenian, Czech, Japanese, Turkish and Croatian. The entire course takes about two hours to complete. It can be taken from anywhere, at any time and in several sessions, each session being saved from one visit to the next.
The ALPHA online course can be accessed on the ADeL platform.
Here are the steps to follow for riders to complete the course:
* Step 1: Register on the ADeL elearning platform with your complete name, as it is written on your UCI License;
* Step 2: Select the course ALPHA and your desired language;
* Step 3: Complete the course and the final test at the end of the course;
* Step 4: Go on the “Achievements” section and make sure you have passed the course and received your certificate of completion;
* Step 5: Download the certificate of completion, save it and send it to your National Federation.
Please do not hesitate to contact <mailto:lads@uci.ch> lads@uci.ch should you have any questions concerning the ALPHA course.
We thank you for your collaboration and commitment to the protection of clean sport.
SPOTLIGHT ON…2020 WCC TEAM
UCI World Cycling Centre’s UCI Women’s Continental Team gets ready for battle
The UCI Women’s Continental Team, WCC Team, is about to embark on its first training camp of the year, where the young women representing nine countries will get to know each other, find their marks and lay down the foundations for a busy year of racing.
The UCI World Cycling Centre (WCC) in Aigle, Switzerland, registered a women’s team with the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) for the first time in 2019. It was made up essentially of the UCI WCC’s trainee riders who come from the world over to benefit from the centre’s professional coaching staff and gain race experience throughout Europe and further afield.
Members of the WCC Team have the chance to race in higher-level events, rub shoulders with professional teams and athletes, and receive international exposure.
After a successful maiden year, five of the 2019 squad have signed contracts with European teams, while two return to the WCC Team which is made up of nine incredibly talented young women from as many countries. As well as the two riders from last year, the team includes two Juniors moving up from the UCI WCC’s Junior programme, a UCI WCC track specialist and another four young riders who participated in a talent identification camp at the UCI WCC in Aigle, Switzerland, in October.
“I know all of them individually and am confident they will work together well and form a really good group,” said their UCI WCC coach Adam Szabó. “It is a very young team – our two senior riders will turn 24 next year and the others are between 18 and 20.
“It is exactly the sort of team I was looking for: a mixture of riders from Europe and outside of Europe, young and not more than one athlete from any one National Federation.”
The team will come together for the first time at the beginning of February at a two-week training camp – possibly at one of the UCI WCC satellite centres – followed by their first race, the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad-vrouwen elite in Belgium at the end of the month. Although their full racing calendar is still to be confirmed, it will most certainly be an extended version of the one they raced in 2019.
Team members
Roni Fishman (Israel), 20 years old
One of the strongest riders on the talent identification camp, where she showed not only physical but also mental strength. She is a positive and energetic team player with some previous race experience.
Eyeru Tesfoam Gebru (Ethiopia), 23 years old
Embarking on her third year with the UCI WCC, she was already part of the UCI WCC Team in 2019. Her experience racing in Europe has highlighted her climbing abilities and she will no doubt have her eyes on the Aigle-Martigny 2020 UCI Road World Championships.
Akvile Gedraityte (Lithuania), 18 years old
Lithuania’s Junior National Champion in the road race and time trial, she also finished fourth in the 2019 UEC Junior European Championships road race. Embarking on her first year amongst the Elite, she has enormous potential and the capacity to race at international level.
Veronika Jandová (Czech Republic), 18 years old
Veronika trained at the UCI WCC in 2019 where she proved to be one of the best riders in the Junior Women’s group that was preparing for the UCI Road World Championships in Yorkshire (GBR). She is mature for her age, with potential to develop into a solid Elite rider.
Amber Joseph (Barbados), 20 years old
Part of the UCI WCC’s track programme, Amber joins the WCC Team with a two-fold objective: to gain in endurance to benefit her track cycling, and to lend her sprinting abilities to the road team.
Anastasiya Kolesava (Belarus), 19 years old
A big talent with great potential, she was part of the WCC Team in 2019. Moving into her second season as an Elite rider, she may get the chance to put her talent to use in a leadership role.
Tereza Medvedová (Slovakia), 23 years old
Tereza comes to the WCC Team with more than four years’ experience racing at continental level. This experience, together with her maturity and ability to read a race could make her natural leader.
Catalina Anais Soto Campos (Chile), 18 years old
Coming from the UCI WCC’s Junior track and road programmes, she distinguished herself in 2019 at the UCI Junior Track Cycling World Championships (silver in the Scratch Race) and the UCI Road World Championships, where she was a key member of the day’s breakaway. Watch for her sprint finishes with the WCC Team.
Magdeleine Vallières-Mill (Canada), 18 years old
She successfully signed off from the Junior ranks with a top-ten placing in the Junior road race at the 2019 UCI Road World Championships in Yorkshire. A pure climber, Magdeleine stood out from the rest in the climbing test at the talent id camp and will no doubt be targeting the Aigle-Martigny 2020 UCI Road World Championships.
UCI WCC CORNER
Interview with Vincent Jacquet
Vincent Jacquet is the new head of the UCI World Cycling Centre (WCC). Appointed Director of International Relations, Development and the WCC in November 2019, the Frenchman joined the UCI 11 months earlier as the Head of International Relations and Solidarity. Prior to that he was Chief of Staff to the President of the provincial council of Doubs, in the French region of Franche-Comté, having spent four years (2013-2017) as National Technical Director at the French Cycling Federation (FCC). Earlier in his career he worked for five years on the staff of the then French Minister for Sport, Jean-François Lamour, and also managed the Regional Physical Education and Sports Centre (CREPS) of the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur and the National Nordic Skiing and Mid-Mountain Centre in Prémanon.
A man with a head full of ideas, Vincent sat down to answer a few questions on his new position and the latest developments at the UCI WCC.
* How would you define the Vincent Jacquet style?
I don’t know if I have a specific style but I’d describe myself as a people person. I take a pretty straightforward approach and I respect people for who they are. I just try to be fair.
* What do you find especially motivating about your new job?
The opportunity to support the roll-out of cycling development projects around the world and the management of teams that are resolutely focused on helping National Federations and Continental Confederations.
The UCI World Cycling Centre
* Could you talk us through the training camps that will be held in Aigle this year?
We will be welcoming athletes throughout the season in the disciplines of road, track, BMX and mountain bike and holding training camps for talented junior track and road riders in the summer. These camps will run for between one and three months. We’ll also be hosting a number of national team training camps at our new BMX Freestyle facility.
On top of all that we’ll have the pleasure of holding a two-week para-cycling course. And with the 2020 UCI Road World Championships being held at home, in Aigle-Martigny, we can devote our energies to setting up training camps to help athletes from certain National Federations to prepare for the competition right here.
* Can we expect to see UCI World Cycling Centre trainees competing at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020?
Yes. One of the UCI WCC’s objectives is to educate and train athletes from National Federations that lack resources so that they can compete in international and Olympic events. Things are looking good in terms of participation at Tokyo and we have already started working on our strategy for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
* The UCI World Cycling Centre also organises training courses for people working in the world of cycling. Why is this so important?
One of the other objectives of the UCI WCC is to train people who work in cycling around the world so we can develop skills and make our National Federations more independent.
The cycling of tomorrow will be shaped by mechanics, instructors, coaches and commissaires, and if we don’t train people we won’t be able to take projects forward.
* The UCI World Cycling Centre recently opened a BMX Freestyle park, which is a valuable resource.
Yes, it’s a wonderful development tool that offers the highest quality in a technical and sporting sense for a discipline that has a huge youth focus and for new approaches that are completely changing the way people look at cycling.
It backs up the UCI WCC’s activities and completes the range of Olympic disciplines present at the site, while also opening the way for partnerships with national teams preparing for international events.
* Could you tell us about some of the developments we can expect in the future?
Pump track should soon be part of the UCI WCC’s activities, which will allow us to attract an even more diverse audience to safe spaces where they can ride and have a lot of fun.
The UCI WCC will further extend the range of activities it offers by running training and beginners’ courses in cycling disciplines for enthusiasts from all walks of life.
UCI World Cycling Centre satellites
* Could you remind us of how many Satellite Centres we have and where they are?
There are currently five approved UCI WCC Satellite Centres:
* Yeongju City in the Republic of Korea
* Izu in Japan
* Anadia in Portugal
* New Delhi in India
* Paarl in South Africa
* How important are these Centres to the UCI World Cycling Centre and how do they work together?
Our ability to do high-quality work at the UCI WCC depends on being organised in such a way that we can look ahead and identify, train and prepare talented youngsters in their countries and continents. This work has to be organised by the UCI WCC and the Continental Confederations through solidarity funding. The five continents all have strongholds with existing infrastructures and capabilities that meet this initial level of requirement, providing the basis for the development of future champions.
* Will we see more Satellite Centres opening around the world?
It’s not so much a question of opening centres as providing certification that recognises what’s already in place and the work that’s been carried out for several years now, as well as using the facilities that governments have already invested in. We won’t be building centres. That’s not what the UCI wants to do. We will, however, be promoting regional initiatives and working with selected sites to organise specific actions for identifying, training and developing talent.
Solidarity and International Relations
* The UCI WCC is there to help National Federations. What can our National Federations expect from you in particular?
Advice, support, expertise, tools and methods for making projects happen and converting them into actions that help make cycling a competitive and popular sport. The work we do has to be informed by the need to help Federations put together their own strategies to meet local needs.
The future
* What are the objectives of the UCI World Cycling Centre and its network of satellites for the year ahead and for the next five or ten years?
To listen, watch, engage and show respect. That might sound simple but it’s the basis of effective collaboration with our regions. We want to create a synergy between UCI headquarters and its regional stakeholders, re-establish a functional relationship between the UCI WCC and the continents, target our local assets and pursue a policy based on objectives and assessment of the actions undertaken. Our objectives for the next ten years can be summed up in three key words: educate, train and perform.