A series of punchy classics-style routes for the Glasgow World Championship road races in 2023 have been unveiled.
The men’s road race will start in Edinburgh before traversing the country and spending ten laps tackling a lumpy circuit around Glasgow. The men will cover 277km with 3,167m of climbing.
The women and under-23 men, meanwhile, will both start on the banks of Loch Lomond to the north west of Glasgow before looping back down to the city. Once there they’ll enter the circuit and complete six and seven laps of the circuit respectively. The women’s elite race will 157km with 1,930m of climbing.
The junior men and women will both start in Glasgow and do nine and five laps of the 14km circuit respectively.
The technical and twisty Glasgow circuit features the punchy climb to Park Circus at the start before heading into the centre of town passing Glasgow School of Art and the University of Strathclyde on the way.
It’ll then pass the Gallery of Modern Art and head into the city’s shopping district on its way to Glasgow’s west end. In its final leg it heads along Byres Road before making for the finishing straight at George Square.
(Image credit: Glasgow World Championships 2023)
Paul Bush, chair of the 2023 World Championships, said the start in Edinburgh and Loch Lomond showed the Worlds were “truly a pan-Scotland event”
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He added: “Set against the backdrop of some of the country’s most iconic and spectacular cities and locations, these historic Championships are sure to capture the imagination of athletes, spectators and audiences around the world and showcase why we are the perfect stage for events.”
UCI president David Lappartient said: “The spectacular and challenging routes will guarantee the show that the organisers had promised us.”
For the first time in the championships history the elite men will not close proceedings but race on the first Sunday of the championships on 6 August with the women racing on the Sunday 13 August to close out the meet. The UCI previously said it structured it like this partly to account for the finish of the Tour de France Femmes being later than the end of the men's Tour de France.
The juniors will race on Saturday 5 August with the U23 men racing on Saturday 12 August.
Organisers are still seeking volunteers to help run the games, the first in the UCI's history to feature road alongside track, mountain bike and para-cycling.
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Having trained as a journalist at Cardiff University I spent eight years working as a business journalist covering everything from social care, to construction to the legal profession and riding my bike at the weekends and evenings. When a friend told me Cycling Weekly was looking for a news editor, I didn't give myself much chance of landing the role, but I did and joined the publication in 2016. Since then I've covered Tours de France, World Championships, hour records, spring classics and races in the Middle East. On top of that, since becoming features editor in 2017 I've also been lucky enough to get myself sent to ride my bike for magazine pieces in Portugal and across the UK. They've all been fun but I have an enduring passion for covering the national track championships. It might not be the most glamorous but it's got a real community feeling to it.
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