{"id":7240,"date":"2024-10-09T16:37:39","date_gmt":"2024-10-09T14:37:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/?p=7240"},"modified":"2024-10-17T16:46:25","modified_gmt":"2024-10-17T14:46:25","slug":"behind-the-scenes-of-uci-world-gravel-championships-with-zdenek-stybar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2024\/10\/09\/behind-the-scenes-of-uci-world-gravel-championships-with-zdenek-stybar\/","title":{"rendered":"Behind the Scenes of UCI World Gravel Championships With Zden\u011bk \u0160tybar"},"content":{"rendered":"

This past weekend, on October 5th and 6th, the region of Vlaams Brabant in Belgium hosted the 2024 UCI Gravel World Championships. A hilly course led the riders between the cities of Halle and Leuven, through Hallerbos, Sonian Forest, Dyle Valley, and Meerdaal Forest, and the We Love Cycling team was there to check on the newly emerging pro cycling discipline.<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Thanks to having the freshly retired road and cyclo-cross ex-pro Zden\u011bk \u0160tybar<\/a> as our guide through the two days of the event, our team was allowed to meet people, enter places, and gain insights from within that we wouldn\u2019t have otherwise. Despite being a Czech native, Zden\u011bk has been living in Belgium for nearly two decades, and Belgians\u2019 adoration for cycling makes him a local celebrity, a fact evidenced by the multiple daily selfie requests. As it turned out, his outgoing nature made it possible to collect many stories and get to the real adventurous spirit of gravel.<\/p>\n

Compared to other cycling disciplines, gravel is pretty much a fledgling concerning the professionalization and \u201cUCI-fication\u201d of its events and races \u2013 2024 marks only the third year of the Championships. Despite the top names of road and cyclo-cross flocking to it already, one could feel there is still an element of novelty, informality, and \u201cwiggle room\u201d in gravel before it might get inevitably tied down by stricter design rules.<\/p>\n

\"Zden\u011bk<\/a>
Zden\u011bk \u0160tybar enjoys a coffee from a tailor-made coffee machine from the boot of a \u0160koda, made by Pro Coffee Club, Nick Bons.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

How it went down \u2013 but through a different lens<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Already on Friday, there was an opening ceremony and visitors and fans slowly started flooding the city of Leuven, banners hung on every streetlamp, and the start and finish arches and areas were being constructed.<\/p>\n

Since the Men\u2019s Elite race included two loops through Leuven (181 km in total) and the Women\u2019s Elite race one (134 km in total), the organizers enhanced the event\u2019s already amazing spectator potential by building two huge fan bases in both cities, which included massive screens with live broadcasts, food and drink stalls, and also the Gravel Expo \u2013 a showcase of not only local brands, where visitors could discover and try out the latest gear, technology, and accessories.<\/p>\n

On Saturday, there was a notable increase in foot traffic, and you could overhear a mix of languages from all over. The Champs started taking over the city\u2019s arteries and mood, the excitement rose. Fan Zones popped up overnight, and there was cheery music over the loudspeakers as noon, the start time of the Women\u2019s Elite race, neared. Alongside the main event, several other amateur and semi-pro groups of women aged 19-50+ and men aged 50-65+ were scheduled to start. <\/a><\/p>\n

The temporary population of Halle increased significantly (official estimates state 155,000 overall visitors) as excited spectators were flocking to the start line, filling every nook and cranny, climbing on low walls and craning their necks to see their favorites line up. Then the starting \u201cshot\u201d rang, and Belgium launched its 48-hour gravel whirlwind, during which it was apparent that Belgians hold no sport dearer.<\/p>\n

\"UCI<\/a>
Compared to other cycling disciplines, gravel is pretty much a fledgling concerning the professionalization and \u201cUCI-fication\u201d of its events and races<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

On the same day, Zden\u011bk originally planned to do a quick recon ride of the course to scout good spectator spots for our photo crew, but by chance, he ended up being a good Samaritan to several racers and brought back stories that nicely illustrated the diversity of riders gravel attracts and the camaraderie one runs into even at pro events.<\/p>\n

Among them was the encounter with an Australian rider who had a nasty fall and apparently suffered a concussion, so he convinced her to quit the race and seek medical help. Then he ended up riding alongside inspirational 65-year-old Tarica Bevo from the US, who was just a gem to be around, joking about fuelling with Belgian fries and losing her \u201cdomestique\u201d husband. Another lovely interaction was with 71-year-old Patricia Konantz, who bonked hard and lost her energy, so Zden\u011bk bought her chocolate en route and encouraged her along \u2013 she eventually made it across the finish line.<\/p>\n

So, without intending to, he ended up being 14 hours \u201cin the chamois\u201d on Saturday \u2013 a slang pro cyclists use for the time spent in the jersey and bibs, as he told us.<\/p>\n

The following Sunday saw the start of the Elite Men\u2019s race, again alongside several other non-pro categories of men aged between 19 and 49. As for any recon rides, Zden\u011bk stayed out of chamois this time and enjoyed the spectacle as a satisfied viewer.<\/p>\n

\"Gravel<\/a>
one could feel there is still an element of novelty, informality, and \u201cwiggle room\u201d in gravel before it might get inevitably tied down by stricter design rules.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In the end, both the Women\u2019s and Men\u2019s Elite events were about beautiful one-on-one battles for victory<\/a> \u2013 Saturday\u2019s Vos-Kopecky face-off, and Sunday\u2019s incredible solo of van der Poel and the tenacity of second-place Vermeersch. The victorious riders were welcomed by fans wielding branded cowbells alongside the tracks, and the anticipation and excitement electrified the air near the finish line.<\/p>\n

The main item of every high-profile race is, of course, the results, and we do not wish to gloss over Vos\u2019 and van der Poel\u2019s performance, but they\u2019re hardly devoid of the spotlight. The way we see it, there\u2019s a more fleshed-out portrait of even UCI-level gravel to be had through digging into its \u201croots\u201d \u2013 the atmosphere, the fans, and pretty much everyone who caught the gravel bug to the point of qualifying for the UCI Gravel Champs.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom my perspective, especially compared to cyclo-cross, which is more competitive, gravel is still more easy-going. Even if it\u2019s a race, let\u2019s say a Gran Fondo, you meet a lot of people riding just for the enjoyment and challenge the long routes pose. I saw a lot of that today,\u201d Zden\u011bk commented, adding, \u201cI was pleasantly surprised by how many riders in senior categories there were, as I saw how technically difficult the route was. The ones I saw and spoke to fearlessly took it on, sometimes crossing half the globe to attend a race like this. They have my utmost respect.\u201d<\/p>\n

During both race days, if you also visited any of the local Fan Zones in breweries, restaurants, farms-turned-bars, and other places, you were met with an air of absolute love for the sport. The cheering on of the passing riders down to the very last amateur was immaculate and genuine, with a Belgian beer in hand after a typical fashion. Even passersby and tourists unknowingly passing in front of the big screens in the streets of Halle and Leuven couldn\u2019t help but be stopped in their tracks to watch at least a few minutes of the incredible live footage from camera crews on motorcycles. The whole event wrapped up on Sunday night with an official afterparty for fans and riders alike, and then it was back to reality for everyone.<\/p>\n

If you, too, nurse a newfound interest in gravel and want to ignite your passion even more, we strongly advise you to visit next year\u2019s UCI World Gravel Championships \u2013 while the event is still in its more laid-back and \u201cniche\u201d phase. We promise the atmosphere will carry away even any non-cyclist loved ones or friends who happen to tag along.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This past weekend, on October 5th and 6th, the region of Vlaams Brabant in Belgium hosted the 2024 UCI Gravel […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":190,"featured_media":7289,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"global-categories":[],"class_list":["post-7240","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-the-latest"],"yoast_head":"\nBehind the Scenes of World Gravel Championships With Zden\u011bk \u0160tybar<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2024\/10\/09\/behind-the-scenes-of-uci-world-gravel-championships-with-zdenek-stybar\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Behind the Scenes of UCI World Gravel Championships With Zden\u011bk \u0160tybar\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"This past weekend, on October 5th and 6th, the region of Vlaams Brabant in Belgium hosted the 2024 UCI Gravel […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/uk\/2024\/10\/09\/behind-the-scenes-of-uci-world-gravel-championships-with-zdenek-stybar\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"\u0160koda We Love Cycling - 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