National Road Series Tours Season confirmed for 2018
A traditional Tours season will kick-start a transformed Cycling Australia (CA) 2018 National Road Series (NRS) with a host of the country’s iconic events to feature alongside exciting new Tours.
As announced by CA in November, the NRS will undergo a number of reforms over the coming seasons including transitions in the scheduling and format of events, improvements in pathway opportunities, and the enhancement of the series’ management and officiating.
From 2018, the NRS will be showcased across three sections beginning with the Tours, which will take in nine events across four states from July through to November.
The NRS will also include a summer-based National Criterium Series set to ignite in November and provide a warm up to the FedUni Road National Championships in January.
A new Classics season will be raced over a six-week period in autumn and will be aligned with the Oceania Championships, which excitingly has been confirmed for Tasmania through to 2020.
The return of the 2018 NRS season will commence with the Grafton to Inverell Classic (May 12), to be held on its usual date before it makes the switch for the 2019 season, followed by Queensland’s Battle Recharge (Jul 27-29) in July.
A host of Australia’s most iconic events return to the NRS in 2018 including the Tour of the Great South Coast (Aug 15-19), Tour of King Valley (Aug 31- Sep 2), Amy’s Otway Classic (Sep 15-16) and Tour of Gippsland (Oct 6-9).
For the first time in the event’s illustrious history, the Tour of Tasmania (Nov 14-18) will include a women’s Tour (Nov 16-18), while the popular Giro della Donna (Nov 24-25) has been elevated to NRS status for both men and women in 2018.
The NRS will continue to provide opportunities for the country’s best developing riders, with strong performances and results rewarded with invitations into Australia’s top UCI events including the Tour Down Under and Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race.
To ensure consistent and professional delivery of all events, CA has implemented a panel of the top national Commissaires who will act as the Series’ Chief Commissaires.
“Cycling Australia has a confident and considered vision for the future of the NRS and we are very pleased to be unveiling the first of our new changes,” said Cycling Australia CEO Steve Drake.
“The 2018 season boasts a great mix of the classic Tours, with the addition of exciting new Tours such as the Tour of Tasmania for women, and the Giro della Donna set to energise the backend of the season.
“The NRS is an integral pathway for Australia’s promising young cyclists and importantly we are pleased the NRS will continue to provide chances for riders to gain starting positions in the country’s top UCI events.
“It is also fantastic to see the introduction of new management standards which will ensure the highest level of and consistency in officiating across the Series, in addition to providing support and guidance to race organisers and team managers.”
Details on the National Criterium Series and Classics season, in addition to NRS broadcast details, will be announced over the coming months
2018 Cycling Australia National Road Series (NRS) Tours
Schedule
- Grafton to Inverell, NSW (Men) May 12
- Battle Recharge, QLD (Men & Women) July 27-29
- Tour of the Great South Coast, VIC (Men) August 15-19
- Tour of King Valley, VIC (Men & Women) August 31- September 2
- Amy’s Otway Classic, VIC (Men & Women) September 15-16
- Tour of Gippsland, VIC (Men & Women) October 6-9
- Tour of Tasmania, TAS (Men & Women) Nov 14-18 (Men), Nov 16-18 (Women)
- Giro della Donna, VIC (Men & Women) November 24-25