This weekend, while much of the planet’s population is still tucked up in bed, the Gravel World Championships will be taking place in a tiny little place amid the enormous space that is Western Australia.
Nunnup, the host town, boasts some brilliant, albeit extremely tricky pea-gravel trails, and many people agree that it’s wonderful to see the World Championships of the fast-growing cycling discipline of gravel racing taking place outside the usual confines of Europe.
But there’s no getting away from the fact that it has been horrendously hard and very expensive for lots of riders to travel to the other side of the world to compete for their country.
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Cycling’s national governing bodies, British Cycling included, are unable or unwilling to devote thinly stretched funding to support riders travelling around the globe to take part in an event that isn’t featured on the Olympic programme.
In a statement, British Cycling said they are “not currently able to provide financial or operational support for riders attending this event.” It has therefore fallen to teams and individual riders to pay their own way.
Despite all of this, the line-up is surprisingly strong. There are 63 riders taking part from Britain, including 2025 British champion Connor Swift and the current national champ Jenson Young who, along with teammate Sophie Wright, received assistance from Ribble Outliers to get to Australia.
“It wasn’t like fully funded, just because it wasn’t budgeted for at the start of the year, but yeah, they [Ribble] gave us a fair bit towards it, which is really helpful,” Young tells Cycling Weekly.
“Even though we ride in GB cycling kit, we’ve had no communication or any support or anything from British Cycling. It was the team that supported it and got us out here.
“I have not even heard from anyone at British Cycling. That’s a bit disappointing, really, that we’ve spent all this money to get here, and we’re riding in the GB kit, and to not even speak to us.”
(Image credit: Maddy Nutt)
Other riders have completely self-funded their travel, using sponsorship income and their own savings to get themselves and their bikes to Australia.
“I’ve had no assistance at all from British Cycling,” former British gravel champion and Traka 560 winner Maddy Nutt told Cycling Weekly, the night before the women’s elite race.
“They even charged us for the skinsuits, which we have to race in. I just used some of my racing budget from my sponsors as a privateer to get here.”
Another rider, Tom Martin, who races for Wheelbase-Cabtech-Castelli, told us that he had to shelve plans to compete at the Worlds when it became too expensive.
“I very nearly decided to go, after finishing in the top 20 at European Championships and racing near the front, along with being first British rider,” he says. “But I made the decision [not to go] in the middle of the season. I was waiting to see if I could get some more financial support, but I didn’t have enough budget.”
He is philosophical about the event being so far away, though, saying: “We’ve had it good with the last three Worlds all being in Europe.” And he’s not surprised about the lack of funding and support from the governing body. “There never is [support], unless it’s an Olympic event, unfortunately. I’ve been to two mountain bike marathon worlds, both self-funded.”
Still, plenty of elite riders from around the globe have made it to the Worlds, including Marianne Vos and defending men’s champion Florian Vermeersch, and the event does promise to be enthralling for those who are lucky enough to get there.
“The field is definitely not as deep as normal for World Champs, but it’s still very competitive” says Nutt. “There are [fewer] road riders dipping their toes in and giving the Worlds a whack, but still a good number of the gravel peloton have made it out.”
British Cycling’s response
When we approached them for comment about the level of support being offered to riders at the Gravel World Championships, a British Cycling spokesperson said:
“We are proud to see British riders competing on the world stage at the UCI Gravel World Championships, and we recognise the commitment, preparation and personal expense that goes into representing your country at an elite level.
“As the national governing body for cycling, our role is to support and enable the growth of the discipline, helping create the conditions for long-term, sustainable development. Gravel is one of the most exciting and fastest-growing areas of cycling, and its success reflects the passion and commitment of organisers, participants, and the wider community. We value the role they have played in developing the discipline and will continue to work closely with them as gravel continues to grow.
“As a non-Olympic discipline, the funding and resources available to support gravel differ from those available in some other areas of the sport, and British Cycling is not currently able to provide financial or operational support for riders attending this event.
“We remain committed to supporting the growth of gravel and will continue to explore the opportunities and resources available to support future editions of the event as the discipline develops.”
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