ABU DHABI, 11 January 2007 — Abu Dhabi will host the $1 million Cycling Race of Champions in November — a cycling challenge pitting the individual winners and teams of the sport’s three most prestigious European tour events into direct competition for the first time in the Middle East.
An initiative of the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA), the Abu Dhabi Cycling Race of Champions — a 204-kilometer three-stage event — will see cycling’s elite battle through a challenging mountain stage up Jebel Hafeet, the emirate’s highest point at nearly 4,000 feet which backdrops the garden city of Al Ain, flanked by two flat stages through the capital’s main highways.
The Abu Dhabi Cycling Race of Champions will be staged annually in the UAE capital for the next five years.
“This event represents yet another significant revolution for Abu Dhabi as we move forward with our ambition of the UAE capital becoming a sporting destination of international renown,” said Sheikh Sultan ibn Tahnoon Al Nahayan, chairman, ADTA, which is sponsoring the event.
Competing in the Abu Dhabi Cycling Race of Champions will be individual winners of Europe’s three ‘grand slam’ cycling events, while the three winning teams from each will enter full teams of eight to ten cyclists, and six support personnel. Also competing will be one invitational team representing the UAE, and four wildcard entrants selected closer to the event. The opening stage will follow a 100 kilometers route that starts and ends at the prestigious 7-star Emirates Palace Hotel. It will loop around Abu Dhabi Island, and several times around the downtown city center to showcase the capital’s key sightseeing attractions.
Stage two — the mountain race — encompasses an 82 kilometers route starting in the heart of Al Ain city circling the downtown area, passing Al Ain Zoo and then climbing up Jebel Hafeet. The final 22-kilometer stage is a showcase of Abu Dhabi Corniche starting and ending at Emirates Palace Hotel.
