Australian cycling fans will have the chance to reconnect with the country’s only rainbow jersey and Tour de France winner Cadel Evans in person at the 2022 UCI Road World Championships next month, when Wollongong welcomes the world’s best athletes for the UCI’s pinnacle road cycling event.
Eight days of elite racing will be accompanied by a non-stop city festival for the whole community.
Cadel will be attending the Championships in full, starting with the Community Day on Saturday 17 September and through the race program from Sunday 18 September to Sunday 25 September, as a Friend of Wollongong ambassador.
Cadel is the sole Australian to win the Elite Road Race UCI World Champion title in the event’s 100-year history. He will be cheering on the local athletes who are vying to claim their own World Champion gold medal and rainbow jersey in front of a home crowd.
“Winning the 2009 road race title in Switzerland is one of my career highlights, and it helped put me on the trajectory to win the Tour de France yellow jersey in 2011,” Cadel said.
“I can’t wait to be among the fans during the 2022 UCI Road World Championships in Wollongong, reliving the adrenaline and excitement of such a significant event in my career.
“It will be even more special being at home in Australia with locals on the sideline and hearing Aussie accents everywhere, and I hope it helps our riders get onto the podium in September.”
Cadel will meet and greet fans, enjoy the world-class racing as a spectator and undertake other official duties as event ambassador for the 2022 UCI Road World Championships. Details will be confirmed closer to the event.
Wollongong 2022 Chair Dean Dalla Valle welcomed the Australian legend to the team.
“Cadel is an icon, not only to cycling fans but to Australian sport lovers who respect and admire home-grown champions who break the mould and go on to achieve amazing feats and we can’t wait to welcome him to Wollongong in September,” Dalla Valle said.
“The 2022 UCI Road World Championships are about celebrating place, creating a legacy and inspiring the next generation of bike riders across the world and Cadel ticks all of those boxes.
“It will be a fantastic opportunity for fans to meet a World Champion in person as the new 
wave of heroes of the sport are crowned right here in Wollongong.”
AusCycling chief executive Marne Fechner said the Australian cycling community is excited to come together in celebration in September.
“It has been a long time coming to host this marquee event in Australia once again, and to see champions of cycling from our grassroots clubs through to our retired and current elite athletes converge on Wollongong will be a really special moment for our community,” Fechner said.
Edited by Peter Needham
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