Tuesday, May 27, 2003
Road to Hamilton 2003 goes through Grand Prix Cycliste de Beauce
From October 6 to 12, the 2003 Road World Championships will be staged in Hamilton, marking only the second time the Worlds have been held in Canada and only the sixth time they have been held outside of Europe.
A key stop along the road to Hamilton 2003 will be the Grand Prix Cycliste de Beauce, which takes place from June 17 to 22 in Quebec. The GP de Beauce is a six-day stage race, sanctioned by the UCI (2.3) for Elite Men, which begins in Quebec City and concludes in St. Georges.
The GP de Beauce will be an important opportunity for Canadian men to gain valuable points in the UCI rankings which will determine the number of riders that can start for the Canadian National Team at the Road Worlds in Hamilton. At the conclusion of the 2002 season, Canada was ranked 31st in the UCI Elite Men's rankings. Based on the performances of Canadian men thus far in 2003, that ranking has improved to 27th.
Participation for the Elite Men's Road Race at the Road World Championships is determined as follows, on August 15 each year, a classification of nations shall be drawn up on the basis of the points obtained in the individual classification by the 10 best riders of each nationality. No account shall be taken of nations that have less than 3 riders in the UCI classification.
Rank 1: The first 10 nations of this classification can enter 18 riders, 12 of which as starters.
Rank 2: The nations classed from 11th - 15th place in this classification can enter 14 riders, 8 of which as starters.
Rank 3: The nations classed from 16th - 20th place in this classification can enter 8 riders, 4 of which as starters.
Rank 4: The nations classed from 21st - 30th place in this classification can enter 4 riders, 2 of which as starters.
The organizing country of the World Championships is granted a higher ranking in the nations classification published on August 15th each year. Therefore, based on the improved ranking, Canada's team has increased from four riders and two starters to eight riders and four starters.
The Road World Cycling Championships will be staged in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada from October 6 to 12, 2003. Over 800 athletes from over 50 different countries will compete in ten different races. There are two disciplines - the individual time trial and the road race with five different classifications, elite men and women, junior men and women, as well as Under 23 men. It will be only the sixth time the Road World Championships have been held outside Europe and the second time in Canada, the first occasion was 1974 in Montreal. Preceding the Road World Championships will be the Tim Hortons Road National Championships from June 27 to 29, 2003. For more information, visit the official website, www.hamilton2003.com.
