At the weekend, the first Gravelbike World Championships for cyclists will take place in Italy. The favorites come from the street – but there are also a few real gravel specialists.
What should you do as a road cyclist if you like to go fast, but also want to leave the smooth asphalt and move off-road in between? That’s right: You get on a gravel bike – a mixture of road bike and mountain bike.
The industry has long recognized the trend – business with racing machines with studded tires is booming. The first world championships in this genre will take place in Veneto this weekend.
Favorit van der Poel – the all-rounder from the Netherlands
The top favorite for the men heading out on a 194km course on Sunday is Dutchman Mathieu van der Poel. The all-rounder who was recently counted among the top people at the Starßen World Championships in Australia. But who then got off his bike early after he had to spend the night before the race in police custody. A confrontation with teenagers had robbed him of sleep and good preparation.
Van der Poel is something of a multi-talent on a bike. He has already been world champion in cyclocross and European champion on mountain bikes. It is quite clear that the gravel bike also seems tailor-made for him.
The usual suspects are there
Van der Poel will be joined in a strong Dutch squad by Niki Terpstra, Piotr Havik and Jasper Ockeloen – all of whom have won at least one race in this year’s Gravel World Series – and unbound gravel winner Ivar Slik.
The “Gravel World Series” is an eleven-part racing series on gravel bikes – organized by the World Cycling Union UCI. Although gravel sports are largely dominated by the usual suspects, especially from the Netherlands and Belgium, the sport is particularly popular in the USA and Australia.
Trend in USA and Australia
Without a doubt, the Australian Adam Blazevic must also be counted among the favorites – he has already won two UCI races this year and stood on the podium for a third time. Alex Howes, who recently retired from the road, is a key figure in the American squad.
Other road riders with a particular talent for this type of terrain are Slovakia’s Peter Sagan, Zdenek Stybar from the Czech Republic, Sacha Modolo and Daniel Oss (Italy) and Greg Van Avermaet from Belgium.
Paul Voss at the start – “expect a tactical race”
From a German point of view, Paul Voss’ start is certainly very interesting. The 36-year-old ex-pro starts with the elite riders, although he would also be eligible to start in an age group (against less strong competition). “I’m looking forward to the race over 190 km on a very flat course. Many big names from road cycling have already announced their start and I’m just in the mood to compete with these riders again,” writes Voss in his blog “Inside Pro Gravel”.
Right at the front he expects the riders from the neighboring country: “The Netherlands will certainly have by far the best team with riders like Niki Tersptra, Mathieu van der Poel and Ivar Slik. Normally, the strongest always wins in gravel races, but I can I can well imagine that it will be different at the World Cup as the races will probably be much more tactical.”
French favorite, Svenja Betz wants to get involved
Among the women, who are already going on a 140 km course on Saturday, there is some evidence that Pauline Ferrand-Prévot could become the leading actress. The Frenchwoman is chasing her fourth rainbow jersey of 2022 after her short track, cross country and marathon mountain bike world titles.
The biggest competitor could be Lauren De Crescenzo from the USA. The American is a winner of the last two editions of the long-running but unofficial Gravel Worlds in Lincoln, Nebraska and has put in strong performances throughout the gravel season. From a German perspective, eyes will be on Svenja Betz. A career changer who has only been on the bike since 2017. The 27-year-old has already won two races in the Gravel Series.
Svenja Betz – late starter
All bikes are allowed
Incidentally, most of the driving in Veneto is on unpaved roads, hard gravel and cobblestones. Only 27 percent of the route is asphalt.
The rules, meanwhile, allow the use of any type of bike – gravel, road, cyclocross or mountain bikes – provided they weigh at least 6.8kg and there are no tire width restrictions. Wheel changes are allowed in aid zones, but bike changes are not allowed: Riders must finish the race on the same frame they started on.