RoadNats ready and set to race

ELITE cyclists from across the country will compete in Ballarat and Buninyong from next Wednesday as the Australian Road National Championships get on the move for another year.

Rolling until Sunday, 16 January, the five-day RoadNats program will feature its usual events; time trials at Federation University’s Mount Helen campus, criterium races in the centre of the CBD, a Gran Fondo, and the ultimate Buninyong road races, which climb the village’s iconic mountain.

City of Ballarat mayor Cr Daniel Moloney said hundreds of Australia’s best athletes, including intellectually impaired and para-cyclists, will put on a show throughout the week, attracting thousands of local and tourist spectators.

“Ballarat has been working hard at positioning itself as the home of cycling in Australia, and our hosting of the RoadNats is part of that events strategy to attract world-class athletes to this prestigious national cycling event,” he said.

“One of the outstanding qualities of RoadNats is its inclusivity.

“It provides direct opportunities for not only the aspirers and the weekend warriors, but most importantly it provides the opportunity for those with intellectual impairments, the deaf and para-cycling sports men, women, and youth to showcase their skills and competitiveness to the watching crowds.”

Individual time trials will run all day on Wednesday, 12 January from 8am, beginning with the all-abilities athletes from 8am, before the masters at 10am, the under-19 men at 1pm, under-19 women at 1.50pm, the under-23 men at 2.45pm, the under-23 and elite women at 3.45pm, and the elite men from 5.30pm.

The time trials for club teams will begin at 10am on Thursday 13 January, before the criterium action starts on Sturt Street at 10.30am on Friday morning, 14 January.

The masters’ 30-minute race will kick things off, before the under-19 women compete at 2.20pm over 15 laps of the 1.1-kilometre course.

The under-19 men will start at 3pm, completing 20 laps, the under-23 men take off at 3.50pm, racing for 30 laps, while the under-23 and elite women will complete 40 laps from 5pm.

At 6.30pm, the elite men will begin their 40-lap criterium and wrap up the day’s program.

From 7.30am on Saturday, 15 January, intellectually impaired and para-cyclists will race up to seven laps of their 10.2-kilometre Mount Buninyong road race course.

The under-19 women and men will ride from 9.40am and 9.50am, completing six and nine laps of the regular 11.6-kilometre course respectively, before the under-23 men compete at 1.20pm for 12 laps.

At 5.15pm, amateur riders from age 16 to seniors will participate in the Gran Fondo, tackling the road race course for themselves, over five laps.

The ultimate day of competition, Sunday, 16 January, will begin at 8.50am with the under-23 and elite women’s road race over nine laps. At 12.30pm, the elite men will take off, ride for 16 laps, and conclude the RoadNats for 2022.

To be broadcast for another year on SBS, and internationally through the Global Cycling Network, the National Championship program will spotlight and celebrate the Ballarat region as a tourist and cycling destination.

“It’s a fantastic opportunity to highlight both the sport and our city’s beautiful landscape across the world,” Cr Moloney said.

“Ballarat is a cycling city. We have the roads, we have the racetracks, and we have the trails for every level and every form of cycling.

“The City of Ballarat recognises not only the value of cycling as healthy social recreation, but it also recognises the tremendous sporting value and its global popularity across its many forms.”

Visit roadnationals.org.au/schedule for more information.

A free community movie night will be held on Saturday, 15 January, in conjunction with the Gran Fondo.

The Gran Fondo starts at 5.15pm, with live music and food trucks from 5.30pm in De Soza Park, and a free showing of Space Jam: A New Legacy on the big screen from 7.30pm.

The movie stars basketball legend LeBron James and a huge variety of Looney Tunes characters, including old favourites Bugs Bunny, Sylvester the Cat, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Marvin the Martian and Speedy Gonzales. The running time for the movie is just under two hours.

Organiser Justin Lane from GTR Events says this year’s RoadNats is a welcome return to some sort of normalcy compared to last year’s heavily restricted and postponed event.

“It’s all coming along really nicely,” he said. “Some of the restrictions that we had to have last year we no longer need. It’s all looking really, really positive, and everyone’s getting pretty excited about it.”

“For the Friday and Sunday events, we’re expecting anything up to 10,000 spectators. For the Gran Fondo on the Saturday night, we’re looking at about 700 or so.”

Additional information can be found via roadnationals.org.au/movie-night.

Ensuring a safe cycling event

THE City of Ballarat has said it’s working with AusCycling to ensure COVID safety is a priority throughout the 2022 Federation University Road National Championships, which began yesterday.

“Last year’s championships were run under very stringent COVID conditions and were still a huge success,” City of Ballarat mayor Cr Daniel Moloney said.

“We have been planning for several months now for all contingencies and I am confident the City of Ballarat and AusCycling will have all the required safety measures in place to ensure the safety of attendees and residents.”

AusCycling executive general manager of sport Kipp Kauffmann said the event’s COVID safe plan is “above and beyond” the requirements of the State Government and Chief Health Officer.

Participants, staff, and volunteers must be fully vaccinated. Workers and volunteers need to do a rapid antigen test when arriving at the RoadNats and follow mask rules.

Hand sanitiser and QR check-ins will be accessible.