In its second year racing through Federation Uni, the 2019 Australian Road National Championships was launched on Tuesday.
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This year, the paracycling disciplines will be fully integrated into the main program, meaning all riders will take on the same courses.
There’s also more opportunities for people to get involved, with the highlight criterium race on Sturt Street now on Friday evening.
A new partnership with MS is another feature, and regular riders can sign up to the Gran Fondo, which is a mass ride against the clock on the championship course up and around Mt Buninyong, to raise money for the charity.
The competition program will feature elite riders, including Olympians and Paralympians, as well as under 23 and under 19s.
The road race and time trials will also be opportunities to see Australia’s best cyclists in action.
Other new features this year include the fixed gear national championships and the school and club time trials, showing new ways for people to get involved in road racing.
Seven-time world champion, triple Paralympic gold medalist and member of the Australian Cycling Team, Carol Cooke said there was a lot to look forward to, but integrating the para events was something special.
“In years gone by, a lot of people have looked at the handcycles or the trikes or whatever and say, ‘oh, look at those poor disabled people giving it a go’, when in fact we’re training just as hard as anybody else,” she said.
“I think for the young ones coming up, it’ll be normal for them, it’ll be part of the cycling community and just another discipline, not a completely different thing, like track or BMX or mountain bike.”
An MS ambassador, Ms Cooke said the new partnership was a valuable fundraiser for multiple sclerosis research, while also providing a fun family day out.
“There will be a few people riding with MS, and it goes to prove that just because you have MS doesn’t mean you can’t do things, it just means you do them a bit differently,” she said.
“There’s about 200 signed up so far, but we need more, so sign up, and come and have a fun day with the family, then skip around to watch me race straight afterwards.”
Ballarat City councillor Ben Taylor said his favourite part of the week was always the close finishes.
“When you see them coming down the hill and it’s between two or three riders, or you’re one or two laps out and there’s a bunch of them coming down so you know it’s going to be a sprint to the finish, that’s the exciting part for me,” he said.
Council has recently upgraded the shoulders on the road up to Mt Buninyong, as the course was used year round.
READ MORE: All of last year’s RoadNats coverage
“You get international teams that come to Ballarat and stay here a couple of weeks to use this circuit as a practice ground,” he said.
“People don’t realise you can have one of the best riders in the world sitting there having a pie in the bakery.”
The RoadNats begin on Friday, January 4.
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