DENVER, June 20, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The 2019 Colorado Classic® presented by VF Corporation will showcase its most international and competitive field yet, with five international and four top-20 UCI women's elite teams, organizers announced today. The top-four domestic teams in USA Cycling's Pro Road Tour rankings, led by Sho-Air Twenty20, also will be coming to the race.
The standalone pro women's road race has received commitments from 16 teams, eight of which are UCI-registered teams, for the four-stage, UCI 2.1 category race which will run August 22-25 through challenging courses in Steamboat Springs, Avon, Golden and Denver.
The team roster at the 2019 Colorado Classic includes:
- ALP Cycles Racing (USA)
- Amy D. Foundation (USA)
- BePink (ITA)*
- Canyon//SRAM (GER)*
- Cogeas Mettler Look Pro Cycling (RUS)*
- DNA Cycling (USA)
- Durango-Specialized-IED (MEX)
- Fearless Femme (USA)
- Hagens Berman / Supermint (USA)*
- LUX/Flexential (USA)
- Point S Auto p/b Nokian Tyres
- Rally/UHC (USA)*
- Sho-Air Twenty20 (USA)*
- Swapit Agolico (MEX)*
- TIBCO-Silicon Valley Bank (USA)*
- USA Cycling Collegiate All Star Team (USA)
*Indicates UCI registered women's team
"With the race's move to the UCI calendar, we will see a much more international field," said Sean Petty, Colorado Classic Race Director. "This year's race will be the most competitive field we've had, especially with riders all over the world battling for significant UCI individual and team points and for their country's Olympic qualification."
The roster of teams for the 2019 Colorado Classic will bring WorldTour race winners, Olympic medalists, previous Colorado Classic podium and stage winners, and collegiate all-stars to the race. This year's international field will include riders from the United States, Canada, Mexico, Italy, Colombia, Chile, Russia, Uzbekistan, New Zealand, Switzerland, France, Finland, Cyprus and several other countries. The final field of teams and rosters of female athletes will be released later this summer.
"All of the changes are exciting and it's really encouraging to have the event increase their support of women's racing in North America," said Sara Poidevin of Rally/UHC Cycling and 2017 Colorado Classic overall winner. "Having a live stream is a great way to showcase women's racing and helps provide sustainability for the event. I'm looking forward to seeing the new courses. Any race at altitude adds another level of difficulty and makes for good, hard racing."
The Colorado Classic has become increasingly important on the women's world race calendar and demand for team entry into the race has been high. The race earned a Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) 2.1 category designation, one of only 13 women's races in the world to do so, which enables riders to earn points for team and individual UCI rankings and country qualification for the upcoming Olympics. The race is also on the USA Cycling Pro Road Tour (PRT), which showcases the premier domestic road calendar events in the U.S.
More than a race, the Colorado Classic is also becoming a movement, helping to create equity in female professional cycling while inspiring and empowering women of all ages to transform the world through sports.
To advance equity for women in pro racing, RPM Events Group LLC, organizers of the Colorado Classic, is offering unprecedented financial support to female athletes at the 2019 event, including a prize purse nearly four times the 2018 women's purse and more than the men's 2018 purse, along with support for team expenses. With two hours of free live video streaming coverage each day of the race, the Colorado Classic will put women's cycling and Colorado on a global stage like never before. The live stream and on-demand replays will be syndicated to fans around the world through cycling and partner websites as well as though Facebook Live and the race's Tour Tracker mobile app.
The four-stage women's race will cover:
Stage 1: Steamboat Springs presented by Smartwool (Thursday, August 22)
Stage 2: Avon presented by FirstBank (Friday, August 23)
Stage 3: Golden (Saturday, August 24)
Stage 4: Denver presented by Gates Corporation (Sunday, August 25)
The Colorado Classic and USA Cycling also have partnered to form an all-star collegiate team, providing an opportunity for rising stars from the USA Cycling Collegiate Program to compete as members of a USA Cycling national team in the 2019 race. The all-star collegiate team will be announced later this month.
To learn more about the Colorado Classic presented by VF Corporation, visit coloradoclassic.com or follow @coloradoclassicpro on Instagram and Facebook for the latest updates. To view and download the Teams Announcement Jersey image, please click on this link.
About RPM Events Group
RPM Events Group LLC is a Colorado-based company committed to re-imagining professional cycling events while providing meaningful social and economic impact. The company owns and organizes the Colorado Classic presented by VF Corporation — a world-class women's pro road race August 22-25, 2019— the only UCI 2.1 women's race in the Western Hemisphere and on the USA Cycling's Pro Road Tour. http://www.rpmeventsgroup.com
About VF Corporation
VF Corporation outfits consumers around the world with its diverse portfolio of iconic outdoor and activity-based lifestyle and workwear brands, including Vans®, The North Face®, Timberland® and Dickies®. Founded in 1899, VF is one of the world's largest apparel, footwear and accessories companies with socially and environmentally responsible operations spanning numerous geographies, product categories and distribution channels. VF is committed to delivering innovative products to consumers and creating long-term value for its customers and shareholders. For more information, visit http://www.vfc.com.
SOURCE Colorado Classic
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