The World Cycling Centre (WCC) in Aigle, Switzerland, celebrates its 10th
anniversary today.
Since opening its doors, the WCC has become internationally recognised,
receiving the label “Olympic Training Centre” from the International Olympic
Committee.
The WCC has welcomed some 571 athletes from 118 different countries,
many of whom have returned several times to train under the guidance of the
WCC’s professional coaches. With two Olympic titles and 32 World Championships
titles, these trainees have made their mark on the cycling world.
In addition to the athletes who train and compete in WCC colours, the
World Cycling Centre makes its facilities available to National Federations and
individual athletes preparing major international competitions. More than 1,000
training camps of this kind have been staged since 2002.
Members of the general public are also welcome at the WCC, and experts
are on hand to initiate them in the intricacies of the different disciplines:
· 20,600 amateurs have taken
part in one of the 1,744 initiations to track cycling
· 193 initiations to BMX have
been given to a total of 2,839 people (since 2004)
· 16,219 members of the public
have been on one of the 685 guided tours of the World Cycling Centre
· Each winter 200 people take
out a season pass to train on the centre’s indoor track.
The athletes are not the only ones to benefit from the World Cycling
Centre’s facilities and experts: coaches, sports directors and riders’ agents
regularly attend courses and sit exams to professionalise their activities. This
education programme is being expanded in 2012 with practical training for
commissaires, regulators, Radio Tour announcers, information motorbike
officials and drivers during the Tour de l’Avenir, the final round of the UCI
U23 Nations’ Cup.
