Madison returns in 2022

ONE of Bendigo’s top athletic events will make its return next year.

The Bendigo International Madison is in its early planning stages, with the carnival scheduled for its traditional Labour Day weekend, from 11 to 12 March 2022.

Secretary of the Bendigo International Madison committee Rik McCaig said it’ll be exciting to finally see the 50th iteration of the event.

“It was very disappointing last year to not be able to hold the event,” he said. “We’ve had a good chat and we believe that we can make the event happen in 2022.”

Mr McCaig said the Madison is currently a tier 2 event, meaning the Tom Flood Sports Centre can be at 75 per cent crowd capacity.

“We’ve got a number of months before the event’s on, hopefully the way things are going there should be some changes to that as well. We’re hoping we might be close to a full crowd for our event,” he said.

While the race usually attracts riders from all over the world, Mr McCaig said next year’s Madison will have a more local flavour due to the challenges of international travel.

“We’re going to focus on Australian and hopefully New Zealand competitors, we’re not seeking internationals at this stage,” he said.

“We’ve got enough depth and talent in Australia that we can put together a good field in both the male and female Madison, plus all our supporting events as well. It’s still going to be a highly competitive field.”

The Madison sees teams racing and sprinting over 200 laps of the track, with plenty of action over the entirety of the event.

To stay up to date with all news regarding the Madison, head to bendigomadison.com.au.