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Ballarat will host the AusCycling Road National Championships in 2024, but will no longer be the permanent home of the event after nearly 20 years.
Key points:
- AusCycling says the advancement of the championship event requires a location change from "time to time"
- A location for the 2025 Road Nats is yet to be announced
- Ballarat's mayor says council will be looking to secure another major January event to replace the Road Nats
At a council meeting last night, Ballarat councillors approved a one-year funding agreement to host the Road Nats event next year — a contract extension worth $660,000.
Mayor Des Hudson admitted council had known for "some months" about a decision by AusCycling to rotate the event throughout other cities in Australia from 2025.
It comes after the announcement two weeks ago the 2026 Commonwealth Games would not proceed in regional Victoria.
Ballarat was due to host the cycling, boxing, para-athletics, and athletics in the Games.
Timing not great, mayor says
Ballarat Mayor Des Hudson said although 2024 will signal the last year of Ballarat's reign as host after 18 years, it does not mean the event would not return in the future.
"The timing of it is not great," Cr Hudson said, in reference to the recent Commonwealth Games cancellation.
"But as one door closes, another one opens. We will be looking at what events we could put on at the same time of the year."
The 2023 event was hosted in January this year with courses in the village of Buninyong and the criterium held in the centre of Ballarat's CBD.
The competition brought an estimated $4 million boost to the local economy, with over 10,000 spectators watching the final day of the event from the sidewalks.
"We have really enjoyed the fact that we get to showcase Ballarat to the world," Cr Hudson said.
"Vision of the road race is beamed nationally … and exposes us on the world's stage for future tourism and investments.
"We'll certainly miss that, but we will certainly look forward to new opportunities."
Changing approach
Former professional cyclist and Ballarat resident Pat Shaw is a member of the Road Nationals organising committee.
He said he had pushed for the event to remain in Buninyong, believing the course delivered a "brilliant spectacle every year", but others encouraged change — given the course had remained the same for so long.
"When you have a course like Buninyong which produces such brilliant spectacles year after year, if you change it and you get this 'yawn fest', is that going to kill the championship?" Mr Shaw said.
"That is the risk AusCycling will take when they move the championship."
AusCycling executive general manager Kipp Kaufmann said a review of the organisation's calendar of events had found the "advancement" of the championship would require a change of location from "time to time".
"We are committed to working with Visit Victoria and the City of Ballarat to return the championships in the not-too-distant future," he said in a statement.
Mr Shaw said he believed south-east Queensland was a likely candidate to host the 2025 event, made attractive by funding and tourism opportunities associated with the Brisbane 2032 Summer Olympics.
"First and foremost we should all be very proud of the event we have been able to deliver in our local community," Mr Shaw said.
"There would be very few towns, let along regional towns in Australia, that could boast such an accolade to host a national-level championship in their home town for so long."
AusCycling CEO Marne Fechner said in a statement that official announcements on the future of the Road Nationals will be made in the "near future".
She said she hoped to work with event partners to deliver a "fitting celebration" of the event in Ballarat in 2024 before it is moved to other locations.
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