RoadNats ready to roll in 2023

BALLARAT is set to be a city of bikes for another summer as the Federation University Road National Cycling Championships roll back to the CBD, Mount Helen and Mount Buninyong.

Cyclists will battle to become Australian criterium, time trial or road race champions when the RoadNats are staged between Friday, 6 and Tuesday, 10 January, and the event is expected to attract 15,000 visitors to town.

Central Ballarat will come to life on Friday afternoon with the criteriums raced on Sturt Street between Lyons and Lydiard streets.

The next day the best amateurs in the country will take part in the Gran Fondo ride on the Mount Buninyong course along with the under 19s and under 23 men in the road race.

Sunday it’s the para-cycling, under-23 women, and elite men and women battling it out for road race glory.

Then on Monday and Tuesday focus switches to the time trials that’ll set off from FedUni’s Mount Helen campus.

Luke Plapp, the 2022 elite men’s national road champion, said the RoadNats now hold a special place in his heart.

“It’s one of the first things I pencil into a season calendar and work towards,” he said.

“It has been a year to remember, taking the green and gold to Europe and trying to showcase the jersey as best as I could.

“This year is sure to be one of the most star-stacked fields we have seen in some time with the majority of Australia’s best WorldTour riders returning, and also the high quality of riders that are coming out of the domestic scene and peaking for Nationals.

“We have seen a number of young Aussies turning pro after successful summers, and I look forward to seeing who stands out this year.”

Ruby Roseman-Gannon, last summer’s elite women’s criterium champion, said she’s motivated to return to the city.

“There is no other race in Australia that has the crowds, atmosphere and community enthusiasm that Ballarat’s RoadNats hosts every year,” she said.

City of Ballarat mayor Cr Des Hudson said the return of the RoadNats cements Ballarat’s position as the country’s home of road cycling.

“Whether it’s the criterium thrills on Sturt Street, or the endurance events in Mount Helen and Buninyong, or perhaps some of the mass participation events, there really is something for everybody,” he said.

“To host the event for 17 consecutive years shows just how valuable it is to us as a city.”

Federation University vice-chancellor and president Professor Duncan Bentley said Cycling Australia’s ongoing partnership with the City and uni is key.

“It’s critically important for Ballarat to have this international profile, and to have such exposure for the university and for Ballarat over 15 hours of international television means people from all over the world are looking down in awe at what we’ve got to offer in Ballarat,” he said.

“For us, it’s one of our biggest contributions to the community, and has a number of important side effects, one being that our sports scientists are heavily involved with AusCycling in trying to hone the ability of the athletes to perform… at peak performance.

“There’s also the critical element of community health. Participating in the event itself gets people much happier and more engaged, and drives more activity in the community, as people get out on their bikes.”