Everything is all set for the big date with the first edition of the ORLEN NATIONS GRAND PRIX. For the first time in its history, thr UCI NATIONS CUP will feature a stage in Poland. There are two days of racing on the schedule. The Bukovina Resort will serve as general headquarters for the event, and the spectacular, technical routes will wind around the mountainous terrain surrounding Bukowina Tatrzanska.
The UCI NATIONS CUP format prescribes that the riders participating in the races will be representing their National teams. The General Classification for this challenge will be scored over 7 rounds between February and August, and will be very important in determining the number of race slots that each country will hold in the World Championships.
The Polish round will take place over the course of two days. On Saturday, June 1st, there will be a 27-km team time trial held on a challenging, hilly route that will feature plenty of climbs and descents. On Sunday, June 2nd, an in-line race will cover 113 km, and here, too, there will be plenty of altimetric challenges; in fact, the stage will take place on part of the same route that has served as the conclusive stage for the Tour de Pologne over the last several years.
There are 17 National teams registered for the start, in alphabetical order: Austria, Belgium, Belorussia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Great Britain, Holland, Italy, Lithuania, Morocco, Poland, Russia, Slovenia, Spain and Switzerland.
(Entry List here attached)
The title sponsor of the event is PKN ORLEN – a leading-edge player on the fuels and energy markets, and the largest company in Central and Eastern Europe.
Organization of the event has been entrusted to Czeslaw Lang and his Lang Team staff; so this year, in addition to the Tour de Pologne, a World Tour race scheduled from August 3rd to the 9th, Poland will be hosting another great cycling event under the Lang Team banner.
“It will be wonderful to see riders in action representing their national teams, a bit like it’s been in the past with the Course de la Paix and other important races. The best cycling nations will be lining up for the start, with lots of emerging young talent. It’s going to be two thrilling days of racing. We’ll start things off with a team time trial, a specialty in which Poland traditionally has always been able to compete at the highest levels, having won many medals in World class competitions. Then on Sunday, the riders will take on a difficult route that presents the perfect terrain for any rider who wants to charge into battle and light up the race,” says the General Director for the event, Czeslaw Lang, winner of the in-line race at the ’80 Moscow Olympics. His portfolio also boasts silver and bronze medals in the team time trial World Championships.
TV Broadcastings:
1 June, 10:15 – 12:55; TVP Sport, tvpsport.pl, mobile app
2 June, 12:05 – 16:05; TVP Sport, tvpsport.pl, mobile app
1 June, 10:00-12:00; Eurosport.pl, Eurosport Player
2 June, 12:00 – 16:00; Eurosport.pl, Eurosport Player
4 June, 21:00-22:30; summary/highlights; Eurosport 2