by sportswriters Shan Lei, Liu Ning
AIGLE, Switzerland, Nov. 23 (Xinhua) — After 21 years of dedication to world biking improvement, the UCI’s World Cycling Center (WCC) has grow to be greater than only a top-level coaching heart for elite cyclists; it additionally serves because the initiator of a legacy of information.
Jacques Landry, UCI WCC Director, instructed Xinhua on Wednesday on the UCI headquarters within the Swiss city of Aigle that they’re now contemplating including a brand new coaching heart in Shanghai to their checklist of worldwide satellites.
“I was recently in China to meet with the president of the Chinese Cycling Association. One of the reasons for my visit in October is because there’s been discussion on the table to open a satellite in Chongming Island,” Landry stated. “I was amazed by the facility already over there. Right now the application is coming in.”
Established in 2002, the WCC was aimed toward offering the perfect coaching facility to athletes of various ranges. Until now, round 1,200 athletes have participated in programs right here, together with world champions and Olympic medalists.
“Our role is basically to broaden the horizons of cycling across the globe and not only specifically in Europe. The best way of doing that is to start working with the emerging nations and in nations that want to actually develop,” Landry stated.
Among the 203 UCI members, 151 nationwide federations are thought of rising nations, together with all from Africa and South America, in addition to some from Asia and central America. Landry defined that the factors are based mostly on GDP, variety of members underneath nationwide federations, and variety of worldwide biking occasions held yearly.
“China is not an emerging nation, but we want to provide some guidance in terms of building a sustainable development plan for Chinese athletes in cycling,” he added.
Currently, there are eight WCC satellites, together with these in South Africa, South Korea and Japan. “What we do is to put a label on the satellites. We send top coaches and mechanical teams to help them build their own coaching and mechanical teams. We build a legacy of knowledge in that country or in that region, to let regional culture come up and continue to develop,” he famous.
According to the UCI, the long run is brilliant for Chinese biking.
“One of the things that we did talk about [with the CCA] was which disciplines to focus on, on the Olympic side of things. There are five Olympic disciplines — BMX freestyle, BMX racing, track, road, and mountain bike. There are a lot of [chances], given the talent pool in China. There’s high probability of success if there’s a certain amount of focus on BMX freestyle, because China has a very, very good gymnastics program, and there’s a good crossover to BMX freestyle,” Landry defined.
China gained gold within the ladies’s observe workforce dash on the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, retaining the title they gained for the primary time at Rio 2016.
“The International Federation is there to regulate the sport and to put rules in place. But I think that is the firm approach of what the International Federation is doing. The softer side of what the International Federation is doing is for the development of the sport, and that’s really what the World Cycling Center does. We are the development arm of the International Federation, and I think they both work really well, hand in glove,” he stated.
The World Cycling Center was based in 2002 to rejoice the UCI’s a centesimal anniversary, that includes a 200-meter indoor velodrome, a BMX racing observe, and different non-cycling services. Landry, a former highway race Olympian in Barcelona 1992 and Atlanta 1996 for Canada, was appointed director of the WCC in March 2022.
“Since the opening of the World Cycling Center, we have about 1,200 athletes that have come through here. The cost of an athlete on average is about 9,000 Swiss francs a month. This becomes a bit of the United Nations of cycling, because you have so many nations come here, and what’s good for athletes is they’re able to learn other cultures at the same time,” Landry stated.
BMX racing first appeared on the Olympic Games at Beijing 2008, and the BMX freestyle had its debut at Tokyo 2020. The UCI plans to function 19 disciplines of biking on the 2027 Cycling World Championships, each Olympic and non-Olympic occasions, to convey extra power and concrete elements to the game.
“Our strategy is to keep the youth engaged. I think it is a key and UCI is doing a good job in terms of keeping the sport young and lively,” Landry stated.