The second edition of the Italian round of the cyclo-cross world cup, the only event on a global level designed to be raced on snow, was presented in Trento. On Saturday, December 17 at the San Leonardo Lakes region (Vermiglio, Val di Sole, Italy) expectations will be on the star, Mathieu Van der Poel, who is highly motivated in light of his first time racing on Italian snow
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In the world of cyclo-cross, there is a "before" and an "after" December 12, 2021, when Grandi Eventi Val di Sole and Flanders Classics managed to turn a fascinating suggestion into a successful reality in Vermiglio (northern Italy). A little more than a year later, on Saturday December 17, Vermiglio and Val di Sole are preparing to relive what the British press have renamed as “snowcross,” by hosting the only cyclo-cross world cup event on snow for the second consecutive winter. Taking place at 1300 meters of elevation in the San Leonardo Lakes region, this is the only world cup cross event in Italy.
The event was presented on Wednesday, November 30 in Trento at the Trentino Marketing headquarters. The press conference was attended by Trentino’s Sports and Tourism Assessor Roberto Failoni, Trentino Marketing’s CEO Maurizio Rossini, Trentino Italian Olympic Committee President Paola Mora, the Val di Sole Tourism Board and Grandi Eventi Val di Sole Director Fabio Sacco, the Mayor of Vermiglio and Pontedilegno-Tonale Consortium Director Michele Bertolini, the Italian Cycling Federation off-road Director Massimo Ghirotto and the former Italian cycling champion Francesco Moser.
After spreading the word all over the world in its debut season and earning record visibility and audience numbers, the Trentino event – the only one in the world designed to take place on snow-covered terrain – has once again been included by Flanders Classics in the UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup calendar. The Belgian organizer, which owns the UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup series, has put its trust this an event that’s truly revolutionary on the cyclo-cross scene, and, according to Flanders Classics CEO, Tomas Van den Spiegel, is destined to become a celebrated classic in the international calendar.
The first event was one to remember, not only for the feedback from onsite participants, but also for the enormous media and television exposure gained through the spectacular images of Vermiglio. Not surprisingly, it was voted by cyclo-cross fans as the event-of-the-year for the 2021/2022 cyclo-cross world cup series. This distinction got an additional boost from the many viewers who watched the event broadcasted by 15 international media outlets.
Organizers aim to repeat that success again by capitalizing on the racecourse’s new features to be introduced this year. These changes to the racecourse are intended to increase the technical and visual appeal by adding special features to the flatter sections and improving the fan experience outside the course tape by making it easier for race watchers to move from one area to another.
Thousands of race fans are expected in Vermiglio from all over Europe, and – in particular – from Belgium and the Netherlands, the two cradles of world-class cyclo-cross. Furthermore, Val di Sole is also the flag-bearer in terms of seeing cyclo-cross among the Olympic disciplines at future winter games.
VAN DER POEL VS PIDCOCK, CLASH OF TITANS IN VAL DI SOLE
The UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup kicked off in the United States in October, but traditionally it’s the events around the end of November and the beginning of December that bring it to life with the debut of the great champions of multi-discipline cycling, such as Mathieu Van der Poel and Tom Pidcock. These two athletes enhance this concept like none other, as they are equally competitive in road cycling and mountain biking.
The Dutchman is approaching the Vermiglio event in the wake of his winning debut in Hulst, Netherlands, while the Brit is the reigning world champion of cyclo-cross who aims to leave his mark on Val di Sole’s snow and ice after his third-place finish last year.
With 2021 winner, Wout Van Aert, not there to defend his title due to a pre-season training camp with Team Jumbo-Visma, Belgium plans to line up world cup series leader, Laurens Sweeck, as well as Eli Iserbyt and European champion, Michael Vanthourenhout. This trio of elite cyclo-cross specialists have what it takes to aim for big wins.
In the women's event, the presence of the reigning champion, the young Dutchwoman Fem Van Empel, has been confirmed. Van Empel, who is firmly at the top of the overall UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup rankings, will be challenged by her compatriots Puck Pieterse, Ceylin Del Carmen Alvarado, Shirin Van Anrooij, and Denise Betsema, as well as Italian Silvia Persico, who is in great shape so far in 2022.
CYCLO-CROSS MOVES TOWARD CARBON NEUTRALITY
When it comes to future and environmental challenges, Val di Sole has often played a pioneering role. Just last summer, Val di Sole collaborated with Climate Partner and organized the first totally carbon-neutral UCI Mountain Bike World Cup event.
The organizers of Grandi Eventi Val di Sole and Val di Sole Tourism Board decided to introduce the “carbon neutral” project for cyclo-cross as well by calculating emissions related to the world cup event in Vermiglio. These emissions were calculated based on the “Greenhouse Gas Protocol Product Life Cycle Accounting and Reporting Standard” (GHG Protocol), a globally recognized protocol.
To achieve a “carbon neutral” event, any emissions that cannot be avoided will be counterbalanced by supporting a forest protection project in Colombia.
THE PROGRAM
The Val di Sole race program, open to the elite men’s and women’s categories, will take place over two days on Friday, December 16 and Saturday, December 17.
Friday, December 16 (all times CET)
2:00 pm-4:00 pm - Practice
Saturday, December 17
10:45 am-12:45 pm - Practice
1:00 pm – Elite women's race
2:30 pm - Elite men’s race
TICKETS ON SALE AT WWW.VALDISOLEBIKELAND.COM
Tickets for Saturday, December 17 are on sale for the price of €15 atwww.valdisolebikeland.com. Free admission for attendees under 12 years-old is available after registering on the ticketing platform.
