THE 103rd Melbourne to Warrnambool Cycling Classic has been run and won but now all eyes will turn to a hopeful long and fruitful road ahead for the iconic event.
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Melbourne to Warrnambool Road Race Cycling Committee chairman Shane Wilson said the newest installment of Australia’s oldest one-day race, which was won by Ballarat’s Nick White and Bendigo’s Peta Mullens, was an “overwhelming success”.
“We had high expectations and we exceeded them,” he said. “We wanted to increase the crowd and community participation and we wanted to improve the experience for the cyclists.
“We wanted to make sure Warrnambool and the race got promoted. We wanted the race to be more interesting with the terrain and in every respect it has been an overwhelming success.
“The feedback we have had from the cycling community has been off the charts.”
Wilson said there was plenty of positive feedback from the peloton on the new course, which rode through Geelong, Winchelsea, Birregurra, Colac, Port Campbell, Peterborough and Allansford before its traditional finish on Raglan Parade.
Two-hundred-and-sixteen riders started in Avalon with 33 competitors abandoning the race along the 262-kilometre course.
Saturday’s edition of the Classic also saw a record number of six women complete the gruelling ride.
Wilson said the committee would look into how it would approach women’s involvement in the event after Mullens called for more of her compatriots to attempt completing the Classic.
“Ideally we want more elite women riding this event,” he said.
“Now I don’t have the answer to whether that is one event or a separate women’s event.
“Logistically there are lots of challenges if you have separate events but the momentum is there at the moment to look for funding and resources that could do that.
“We would like to have an elite women’s event as well but the race brings many challenges as it is so to have another event would add another layer of complexity – but why not see what we can achieve.”
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Sean Hardeman
I'm a sports journalist for the Warrnambool Standard who covers a number of different sports across the south-west of Victoria. I enjoy watching cycling, surfing, football, soccer and Formula 1.
I'm a sports journalist for the Warrnambool Standard who covers a number of different sports across the south-west of Victoria. I enjoy watching cycling, surfing, football, soccer and Formula 1.
