Ipswich hosts international cyclo-cross championships for second time

Hundreds of people are descending on Ipswich to compete against the best in the world in their age group as the UCI World Masters Cyclo-cross Championships returns to Suffolk.

The event, held at Trinity Park for the second year running, will see amateur cyclists aged from 35 to 80-plus take part.

It is being held over three days.

Organiser Steve Grimwood said this year's edition was "truly global" with 600 riders from 20 nations entered.

The competitors will race on bikes that look similar to road bikes, but have knobbly tyres, around multiple laps of a 3km (1.9-mile) circuit.

The course features a fast start on a road section at the Suffolk Show showground, two purpose-built bridges, grassy corners, a 40m (131ft) sand pit, and woodland, plus steps and hurdles where riders will have to dismount, run with their bikes and remount.

Mr Grimwood said it was an "exciting and spectator-friendly" sport, which is free for spectators, and that riders were arriving with "big smiles on their faces".

"Last year we were really struggling with the Covid regulations... so this year, it's been a real relief to organise the championships without having all of those worries and to be welcoming everyone from all over the world," he said.

"It's a bit like a big family gathering, everybody coming together, they all have the same passion for cyclo-cross and they are really looking forward to seeing all their friends, having good, tough racing."

The event, organised with support from East Suffolk Council, starts with races for women competitors aged over 55 at 11:45 GMT, followed by categories for men aged 60 upwards in the afternoon.

Saturday will see women aged between 45 and 54 take to the start line. Men aged between 40 and 59 will also be competing across four different races.

The younger age groups will race on Sunday.

Among those competing was Gjertrud Boe, from Norway, who got bronze in Friday's 60-plus women's category.

She is the current European champion for her age group and has been world champion twice before, but she was unable to come last year because of the Covid restrictions

The 60-year-old from Oslo said it was a "really fun race".

Meanwhile, Maria Fernandez, 49, and her partner Jorge have returned to Ipswich from Madrid for the second time.

She said they were both "so happy" to be back in Suffolk and were "looking forward" to racing on Saturday.

"But at the same time, we don't want it to finish because it's the last year here and we enjoy it a lot," she said.

On Thursday, more than 100 schoolchildren took part in School Games to get a taste of cyclo-cross, and on Sunday, an event for riders with learning difficulties will take place.

Next year's World Masters event will be in Hamburg, Germany.

"Skinny tyres, mud, short, sharp off-road races, with hurdles, obstacles and intense action," says British Cycling.

It is considered to be one of the most accessible forms of cycle sport with racing for everyone from young kids to grandparents.

The season takes place throughout autumn and winter and races are held at off-road venues such as public parks and other open spaces.

Surfaces can include grass, mud, gravel and sand, and courses are short and winding, enabling multiple laps to be completed.

Riders race for a set time, ranging from 10 minutes for the under-12s to an hour for the senior men.

Courses often feature obstacles such as hurdles, steps and sand pits, forcing riders to dismount and carry or run with their bikes.

Source: British Cycling

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