High Velocity Cycling Club set to host International Classic early April
Published:Saturday | February 19, 2022 | 12:10 AMLivingston Scott/Gleaner Writer
President of the Pan-American Cycling Confederation, José Manuel Peláez Rodriguez of Cuba, and the president of the Caribbean Cycling Confederation, Trevor Bailey, have been invited for the Jamaica International Cycling Classic, scheduled for April 1-3 in Montego Bay.
Carlton Simmonds, president of the High Velocity Cycling Club, organisers of the event, said they have invited the two regional heads to assess and grade the event. He hopes that they will give them a passing mark to become an Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI, international governing body of cycling)) sanctioned event where riders can earn points for qualification to regional championships.
“We plan to get it ratified by the world governing body where riders from the region and abroad can participate and get qualification points for future meets such as the Central American and Caribbean Games, Pan American Games, Commonwealth Games and the Olympic Games.
“In essence, this is going to be the first of its kind in Jamaica after being ratified,” he said.
However, the event will not get the international status they seek until the three-day event is complete and the presidents get a chance assess the standard of competition and make recommendations.
“It (sanctioning) will be after the event. So we have invited the Pan American Cycling Confederation president and the Caribbean Cycling Federation president to come and see the cycling,” Simmonds said.
CHALLENGING TOUR AHEAD
The tour promises to be a very challenging one, that will put riders to the test in every respect. The event will start at Little Village in Montego Bay, at 8:30 each morning, and ends at the same place.
The first leg will run from Little Village to the Falmouth bridge. The riders will then race to the Rose Hall Great House before returning to Falmouth and then back to Little Village for the finish.
The second stage will take them to Discovery Bay and back to Little Village, while the third stage will carry them through Duncans, Trelawny, and then back to Little Village.
The overall winner will walk away with US$1,000, second place will get US$800, third US$700, fourth US$600 and fifth US$500.
Each stage winner will also take home US$500, second place US$300 and third place US$200. The event will be run on a points system, which will be used to select the overall team champion.
“Planning has been going good so far but we are still looking for sponsors. We will be live streaming over the two days so that in itself will give good viewership for branding,” he said.
More than 20 teams and some 150 athletes from the region are expected to attend, including two teams each out of Atlanta, Miami and New York in the United States.
“They’ll be coming with some decent guys. So it is going to be a very interesting tour for our locals,” he commented, while adding that the plan is for the event to grow and attract more participants.
The event has been fully endorsed by the Jamaica Cycling Federation (JCF). Simmonds said they will be adhering to the protocols that the Ministry of Sport has already set out for cycling but they will also, by Monday, be submitting a document to the relevant ministries to get approval for the event.