A new report into the UCI Road World Championships 2019 has said the event inspired people to cycle more — but had a ‘major disruptive impact on the community in Harrogate’.
The study commissioned jointly by British Cycling, Sport England and UK Sport found that 45% of those surveyed said they would take up cycling or cycle more after watching the event.
The 11-day event in September 2019 received a hostile response from many local businesses because road closures hampered trade. The event also caused £130,000 worth of damage to the West Park Stray.
The report, compiled by the Sport Industry Research Centre at Sheffield Hallam University, covers awareness of the event, its perceived impacts, and the extent to which it influenced changes in physical wellbeing, mental wellbeing, individual and community development.
It found that:
- 57% of those who interacted with the event felt prouder of Yorkshire and the UK.
- 45% were inspired to take up cycling or cycle more.
- 49% felt the event had brought their local community closer together.
But the report adds:
“There were also some negative consequences of the Road World Championships expressed by host community residents surveyed, particularly in Harrogate, where respondents were critical of the inconvenience and disruption due to the prolonged road closures compared with other host locations such as Doncaster and Leeds.
“Another sticking point in Harrogate was the damage caused to a section of the Stray – a protected public area of green space – where the Championship Fan Zone was located.
“The event was seen to have had a major disruptive impact on the community in Harrogate, which is illustrated starkly by Harrogate Borough Council’s decision to refrain temporarily from hosting major events of this scale.”
Read more:
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- Questions raised over timing of Harrogate council’s UCI review
- Review opens into Harrogate’s UCI Road World Championships
Cllr Stanley Lumley, Harrogate Borough Council’s cabinet member for culture, tourism and sport, said the report showed the UCI Road World Championships had inspired people to get more involved in sport.
He added:
“It is inevitable that hosting an international event of this scale can cause some disruption on day-to-day life.
“But the global television audience has no doubt left a lasting impression on what Yorkshire and specifically the Harrogate district has to offer. This will no doubt encourage a number of visits in the future which our tourist economy so desperately needs.
“It was also positive to read that the volunteering opportunities the event created has had a lasting impression on those involved.”
Rod Findlay, British Cycling’s business services director, said:
“The 2019 UCI Road World Championships in Yorkshire was a truly momentous celebration of cycling, and from the report published today it’s clear that the legacy of those nine days of racing will be felt for many years to come.”
Review into UCI
Last week, a public survey into the UCI championships, which were held in Harrogate, closed.
Harrogate Borough Council’s overview and scrutiny committee set up the review to build on “its successes and identifying any areas for improvement to inform the organisation of future events”.
However, questions were raised over why the committee decided to hold a review on the UCI two years after the event.