Visit Scotland | Alba
Article published 08/03/2022

Stirling will provide the stage for some of the world’s best cyclists after being announced as the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships time trial venue as part of the biggest cycling event ever held.

The historic city and surrounding area is the seventh location to be announced as a host of the event taking place in Glasgow and across Scotland from 3-13 August 2023.

Stirling’s iconic landscape will provide a fitting backdrop, with the city also having held the opening time trial as part of the inaugural Pru Tour in 1998, won by cycling legend Chris Boardman.

To celebrate the return of world-class cycling to Stirling, Boardman revisited the scene of his triumph 24 years on alongside current Team GB time trial athlete Anna Shackley, who was born just 30 miles from Stirling and made her Olympic debut in the time trial in Tokyo in 2021.

I’m thrilled Stirling will host the time trial as part of the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships. I have great memories of wining the time trial stage of the Pru Tour when it was here.

The castle is a spectacular backdrop that adds drama and showcases the heritage of the region. It is the perfect stage for an extra special World Championship that brings together so many disciplines for the first time.

As well as this historic setting for a historic event, I hope the UCI 2023 World Championships will give us a platform to remind people what a wonderful machine the bicycle is for simply getting to shops schools and workplaces under our own steam. Be it entertainment or utility, bikes make our lives better!

Chris Boardman, Olympic gold medalist, British Cycling policy adviser and Active Travel England Commissioner

Competing in the Olympics gave me a real taste for international competition at the highest level and made me determined to make the team for the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships.

Combining the Championships for the first time ever will be absolutely huge and a really positive step for the sport of cycling. I’m proud that they will be held in Glasgow and across Scotland for the first time and it would be a huge honour for me to compete in front of a home crowd.

Anna Shackley

I am delighted to confirm Stirling as our second location outside of Glasgow to host the inaugural 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships, further showcasing this as a truly pan-Scotland mega event.

In Glasgow and across Scotland we have proven ourselves as world-class hosts of major events. We are incredibly proud the UCI has entrusted us with hosting the first ever UCI Cycling World Championships and to play our role in creating cycling history.

We want the whole of Scotland to get behind the Championships and I have no doubt that by utilising iconic locations such as Stirling we will capture the imagination of not only people across Scotland but globally.

Paul Bush, Chair of the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships

Stirling’s involvement in the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships will give a major boost to its bid to become UK City of Culture, showcasing the city and the region to a global audience.

To date, five venues have been announced in Glasgow, with Dumfries & Galloway (para-cyling road) and Stirling (time trial) also hosting events across Scotland. Additional venues and locations elsewhere in the country will be confirmed in the coming weeks and months to ensure a pan-Scotland delivery and to capture the imagination of the entire country.

The 13 UCI World Championships included in the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships are: BMX Freestyle Flatland; BMX Freestyle Park; BMX Racing; Gran Fondo; Indoor Cycling; Mountain Bike Cross-country; Mountain Bike Downhill; Mountain Bike Marathon; Para-cycling Road; Para-cycling Track; Road; Track; Trials.

Wallace Monument
Wallace Monument
Image credit VisitScotland / Kenny Lam

The 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships are being delivered in collaboration between the UCI, Scottish Government, Glasgow City Council, UK Sport, British Cycling, Glasgow Life and VisitScotland. The partnership aims to create a blueprint for future editions by ensuring the inaugural event is authentic, innovative and distinctive.

Read the full announcement at the 2023 UCI World Cycling Championships website

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