Val di Sole and Rucphen to complete 2021-2022 UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup calendar

The new format of the UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup will be rolled out for the first time this winter. With the number of rounds extended to 16, athletes and fans can look forward to a dynamic and full calendar combining established prestigious events and new arrivals to the international cyclo-cross series. Continuing tradition, the 2021-2022 UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup will start in the United States, in Waterloo on 10 October. With the announcement of the final two venues - Val di Sole (Italy) and Rucphen (the Netherlands) - the calendar is now complete. 

The United States will host three rounds after being forced to cancel its events in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. The first UCI World Cup race of the 2021-2022 season is scheduled for 10 October in Waterloo. Barely three days later, a dress rehearsal for the 2022 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships awaits in Fayetteville (Arkansas). The American adventure will come to an end in Iowa City on 17 October.

UCI President David Lappartient said: “With a significant increase in the number of rounds, the UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup will be an even more effective showcase for this exciting and spectacular discipline. It will offer fans multiple opportunities to witness racing at the highest level, be it in traditional popular cyclo-cross venues or at events that are new to the UCI World Cup calendar.”

The return to Europe will see some classics on the programme. Zonhoven (Belgium) awaits on 24 October and only one week later it's time to visit another legendary Belgian cyclo-cross destination, Overijse. In mid-November, participants in the UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup will first take on the – often freezing cold - circuit in Tábor (Czech Republic), only to return to Belgium for the traditional race through the sand of Koksijde the week after. At the end of November riders and fans will get to know the circuit in Besançon, France.

In December the races will quickly follow each other. After Antwerp (Belgium) on 5 December, racing will head to Val di Sole in Trentino, Italy, one week later. "This is a very nice addition to our calendar," says Flanders Classics CEO Tomas Van Den Spiegel. "Val di Sole has tons of experience in off-road cycling, regularly hosting the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup and preparing to host the UCI Mountain Bike World Championships at the end of August, five years after it last organised this major event. They are a reliable organisation and will undoubtedly draw on their past experience next winter to organise a cyclo-cross race at the highest level."

A week later, on December 18, the cyclo-cross peloton will return to the Low Countries. Newcomer Rucphen, where the 2020 Dutch Championships for cyclo-cross were held, will be followed just one day later by the established Belgian round, Namur. One week later (December 26), we are heading to Dendermonde, where wind and mud made for a tough race last winter.

Just after the turn of the year, the peloton will head back to the Dutch venue Hulst, just like last season, followed by a new round in Flamanville in the Normandy region of France. We will finish the 2021-2022 season in Hoogerheide with a third and last race on Dutch soil, one week before the 2022 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Click here to download the calendar.