Cycling fans from all over the world come to Tirol
Last updated on 30.09.2018
An array of colourful flags symbolise the diversity of nations at the Road Cycling World Championships in Innsbruck-Tirol, with fans from around the world celebrating and cheering on the athletes together.
“The mountainous panorama from Innsbruck is really wonderful,” said Fernando Murcia and John Henry Ricon from Colombia. Their team is one of the favourites in Sunday’s grand finale, the Elite Men’s Road Race. There are people from Uzbekistan and Brazil, as well as fans from the USA and Africa. But most of the fans cheering on the athletes from the sidelines are from Tirol. “The local audience has really pushed me – they have given me an incredible amount of motivation,” says Laura Stigger, the Tirolean gold medalist.
Fans from all over Europe
Chris Peereman, from Belgium, and his friends travelled to Innsbruck with a campervan. They were on the road for 16 hours – they have not missed a single Road World Championships since 1990. “There is very good food, good beer as well as extremely friendly people”, enthused Peereman and his friends. Denmark, the Netherlands, Italy and France are also big cycling nations. Thousands of fans from these countries are currently on their way to Tirol, with a big event and sunshine to look forward to. Norwegian fans clad in Viking outfits have been spotted as well.
A Slovakian hero
For the Slovakian fans, the winner of the Elite Men’s race is already clear: their fellow countryman Peter Sagan, who they believe will pick up the rainbow jersey for the fourth time in a row in Innsbruck. And that’s despite many experts thinking that the muscle-packed sprinter will struggle with the steep race course.
A fan club in orange
The Netherlands is represented by a very special group of fans. They all wear the same orange T-shirts. Why? Because of Ellen van Dijk. The multiple World and European road cycling champion can already be proud of her two bronze World Cup medals. The fan club is headed by Ellen van Dijk’s parents. The mood along the tracks and in the finish area is already fantastic, and with the grand finale at the weekend, the enthusiasm is sure to increase.
The Tifosi are coming
Italy, in particular, has a long tradition of competitive cycling. The cycle race Giro d’Italia has been running since 1909 and the Italian fans – the Tifosi – are considered especially hot-blooded. Thousands of Italian fans will travel to Tirol on Sunday for the Elite Men’s Road Race, once again boosting the atmosphere of the UCI Road World Championships. The Italians have reason to celebrate: Alessandro Fancellu won bronze in the Juniors Road Race, Camilla Alessio won silver in the Women Juniors Individual Time Trial, with Andrea Piccolo winning bronze in the Men Juniors Individual Time Trial. “We are proud of our young riders and are already looking forward to the weekend,” said a representative from the Tifosi in Innsbruck.
Close to the action in the fan zones
Experiencing the live ambience while keeping an eye on the entire course of the race is best done at Road World Championships’ fan zones. Fans cheer from the finish area of the Innsbruck Hofburg (Imperial Palace) as the new world champions enter the home stretch. In addition, the races are also broadcast live on several video screens. There are also three fan zones along the Olympic Circuit. The fans can also get a spectacular view of the riders from Innsbruck Landhausplatz, above Schloss Ambras and at Patscherkofel gondola’s bottom station. These areas also have video screens set up so fans can watch every moment of the race.