On the sidelines of the UCI congress this Friday, David Lappartient confirmed that he was going to propose the candidacy of cyclo-cross to integrate the program of the Winter Olympic Games in 2030. They will take place in France.
David Lappartient thinks (very) big. Current president of the International Cycling Union (UCI), and candidate for president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the Breton dreams of seeing cyclo-cross arrive at the Olympic Games. He thus announced that he was going to submit an application to… the IOC to make cyclo-cross a discipline at the 2030 Winter Olympics in France.
“It would be a wonderful asset.”
“We would like to propose to the IOC and the French Alps Committee which will organize the 2030 Winter Olympic Games that cyclo-cross could join the Olympic program, it would be a beautiful symbol,” he declared in comments reported by the Direct Vélo site, this Friday. “Cyclo-cross was born in France, a little over a century ago. Even if it is only a hypothesis today, we think it would be a wonderful asset for the Winter Olympic Games “, he argued.
Contested for a little over an hour in the undergrowth or on circuits covered in mud, between October and February, the cyclo-cross races are fueled by short but steep climbs, significant changes in altitude and technical turns which impose strong reminders. For several years, the discipline has established itself as the training center for riders who are as brilliant as they are spectacular once they arrive on the road, from Mathieu van der Poel to Wout van Aert via Tom Pidcock.
