The pinnacle of Belgian cyclocross, the bpost Bank Trofee and Superprestige series, along with UCI World Cup Cyclocross, may indeed come to USA in the not too distant future.
Organizers of the series met with the UCI’s cyclocross commission last weekend to discuss ways to expand the series outside of Belgium.
However, this move doesn’t not come without it’s concerns. Christophe Impens, a representative with the bpost Bank Trofee series, said there are two important conditions for bringing the races to the USA:
"The three series – World Cup, Bpost Bank and Superprestige – must be part of a block, and there must be a ninth race. We do not want any of our current ‘crosses to be lost for an American round," he told the Belgian media.
"We want to avoid the riders having to fly back and forth three times, and having to overcome jetlag. Therefore all matches must be completed within a period of 10 days, preferably sometime in September," Impens said.
However, riders such as Sven Nys, Lars van der Haar, Bart Wellens, and Rob Peeters have already tested themselves by completing in some of early US races – with little to no detriment to their regular, full European calendar.
Impens clarified to the media that the concept of having a US round is still only in the idea phase.
"We made it clear to the UCI that we are not reluctant to do a race in the US, but otherwise there was nothing discussed. What about our sponsors? Television? Logistics? We haven’t talked about that."
The UCI previously discounted the idea of adding another round to the series on US soil. However, they seem to be opening up to the possibility.
"New bosses bring in new rules," UCI ‘cross coordinator Peter Van den Abeele said, adding he had a good feeling about the conversation and the cooperation of the other series organisers.
"I still have over a month of work to do, because the new calendar will be presented on the eve of the world championships."
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