China’s premier domestic cycling event — the 2012 National Road Cycling Championship — will kick off in Changsha on September 26. It is expected that 26 sports teams from Hong Kong and Macau, along with 400 national-level professional athletes, will compete. The China Changsha Around Xiangjiang River International Cycling Invitational Tournament, approved by the Chinese Cycling Association, will also be held concurrently.
According to Tan Yong, Director of the Changsha Municipal Tourism Bureau, the National Road Cycling Championship features three events: the city circuit race, the individual time trial, and the road individual race, divided into senior and junior categories. The city circuit race covers a total track length of 7.55 kilometers, with men completing 10 laps (75.5 km) and women 8 laps (60.4 km). The individual time trial track is 20.7 kilometers long, with men riding two out-and-back laps (41.4 km) and women one lap (20.7 km). Both events will take place in the Meixi Lake International Community, which combines mountains, water, islets, and urban scenery, aiming to allow participants and spectators to enjoy the thrill of cycling while taking in Changsha’s distinctive landscapes and unique Hunan cultural charm. The road individual race will be held along a course between Xiaoxiang Avenue, Yanghu Wetland, West Second Ring Road, Meixi Lake, and Yuelu Avenue, spanning a total of 30 kilometers, with men completing 6 laps (180 km) and women 4 laps (120 km).
The track for the China Changsha Around Xiangjiang River International Cycling Invitational Tournament aligns with the route of the individual race in the National Road Cycling Championship. The men’s amateur group A will complete 2 laps (60 km), while the men’s amateur group B and women’s group will complete 1 lap (30 km). The event will invite 60 cycling enthusiasts from seven countries and regions — France, the United States, Australia, Iran, Russia, Hong Kong, and Macau — as well as over 800 domestic amateur athletes.
In recent years, with the hosting of two editions of the China Changsha Around Xiangjiang River Cycling Invitational Tournament, cycling sports, cycling tourism, and fitness leisure activities have flourished in Changsha. According to statistics, the number of cycling tourism enthusiasts in Changsha has now exceeded 40,000, and one-day and two-day cycling tours have become a beautiful highlight of Changsha’s tourism offerings.
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