The Statue of Liberty, Fifth Avenue and the Empire State Building are icons of New York City, but starting May 19, the Gran Premio New York City (GP NYC) will be added to them.
The one-day cycling competition will have its inaugural edition based on the more than ten-year history of the Gran Fondo New York (GFNY), one of the largest amateur events in the world with the participation of more than 5,000 cyclists, who in 2024 will have the opportunity to ride the same route of a UCI 1.2 competition, starting 15 minutes after the elite category race.
There will be 25 teams from more than 15 countries that will compete in the New York City Grand Prix, one of the most anticipated races of 2024, which will also mean the return of the major professional road races to the United States after the end of major events that came to be part of the UCI calendar such as the Tour of California and the Colorado Pro Cycling Challenge.
Holding a UCI 1.2 professional race and a mass amateur Gran Fondo at almost the same time and on the same course is an event format never seen before in cycling, although it is commonly done in track and field and triathlon competitions.
The GFNY organization is taking a revolutionary step to unite professional and mass participation racing to augment both fields and leverage existing operations, logistics and exposure. Something seemingly obvious for other endurance sports, but not done in cycling, the GFNY stated in official press release.
In this revolutionary format for cycling, the 180 professionals from 25 teams will line up 15 minutes before the 5,000 amateurs on the lower level of the world’s busiest bridge, the George Washington Bridge, on May 19, 2024.
Both races will follow the GFNY course on a 137-kilometer (85-mile) loop through Bergen County, New Jersey and Rockland County, New York, with 2000 meters (6500 feet) of elevation gain.
“The addition of a professional race to GFNY’s mass participation races has been in the works since 2014,” said GFNY CEO Uli Fluhme.
“This new format of joint pro and amateur races aims to revolutionize cycling, where the two traditionally compete in separate events. Having the pros take the same course as the amateurs, just a few minutes before them, will bring race fans closer to their heroes and enhance the event experience for riders, spectators and sponsors.”
The Italian teams of the ProTeam category: VF Group Bardiani-CSF Faizanè and Corratec-Vini Fantini, which less than a month ago disputed the 2024 edition of the Tour Colombia, head the list of participating teams for the 1st edition of the Grand Prix New York City. The two squads took part in the Strade Bianche and Tirreno Adriatico, so they already appear as the top favorites to win the first GP NYC champion trophy.
The list of confirmed teams is completed by the continental category teams: Trinity Racing (UK), Project Echelon Racing (USA), Hustle Pro Cycling (Canada) and Skyline – Cadence Pro Cycling (USA) plus the elite category teams: Cannondale Echelon p/b 4iiii (Canada), CLN-Wiawis (Switzerland) and CS Velo Racing (USA).
“We chose GP NYC because it’s important for our sponsors to race in New York City. But also because it’s going to be simply spectacular. It is a great privilege and honor for us to be in the inaugural race. The demanding course forces us to choose our lineup carefully. We will need strong climbers who can withstand surprise attacks and at the same time strong men in the sprint,” said Corratec-Vini Fantini director Francesco Frassi.
The registration stage for the GFNY 2024 will be open until Sunday, March 31, giving thousands of participants the added value and unique opportunity in the world of professional and amateur cycling to ride the same route as the New York City Grand Prix, an event that aims to become one of the great classics of world cycling.
Source: Sergio Urrego, Mundo Ciclístico Magazine