Former Australian pro Mark Renshaw doesn’t know who will win the men’s elite race at the UCI Road World Championships in Wollongong – but he thinks he knows where it will be won
Former Australian pro cyclist Mark Renshaw doesn’t know who will win the men’s elite race at the UCI Road World Championships in Wollongong – but he has revealed where it will be won.
Renshaw said the men’s elite ride, with 3945 vertical metres of climbing, was “an extremely difficult course that can be divided into three stages”. “It’s a very exciting, punchy circuit,” he said. “Lots of points where they have to brake and reaccelerate: it’s 17.1 kilometres long but has 33 corners.”Within this speedway cauldron of lycra and carbon fibre, Renshaw says a short, lactic nightmare pinch of Ramah Avenue, 1.1 kilometres long but with gradients of 14 per cent, will be crucial, as will the nearby descent where riders will push 100km/h before a sharp right turn.
”It wouldn’t surprise me if the race comes down to this point, with about 1.5k left to go,” Renshaw said.“This is Wollongong’s Olympic moment,” she said. “It’s on that same magnitude for us: 300,000 people are expected over 10 days. But it’s the global reach on TV that really gives us a chance to sell the area to the world.”