Consett cycling event brings European champion to town

BBC News

5 hours ago

A cycling event which brought a European champion to a town needs to remain a yearly fixture, local businesses have said. The Tour of the Reservoir and an accompanying cycle festival took place in Consett on Sunday for the first time since 2019.Jente Michels, from Belgium, was one of the 100 men to compete and he said he was keen to take part again despite it being the "hardest race" of his life. Local businesses said the event would continue to grow and they were already feeling the benefits.
Festival organisers said the return of the event was not a "one-off" with plans to bring it back in 2026 and 2027. It was set up to celebrate the resilience of Consett and highlight it as a cycling hub, however was halted due to the Coronavirus pandemic.This year's events were also held as a tribute to former race organiser Mike Hodgson, who died in 2020.
For European Cyclocross Champion Mr Michels, it was his first road race in England."It was the hardest race I've done in my life," the 22-year-old said.
"Consett is a really nice place and the scenery is something you can never find in Belgium."He said his grandparents also joined him in Consett and he would "absolutely" take part in the Tour of the Reservoir again. "I don't know what the day will be, but when it's released that's a date I will mark to make sure I compete again."
Talks are set to take place next week to discuss the future of the events.John O'Connor, chair of regeneration body Project Genesis Trust, said: "It wasn't just another one-off event, hopefully we'll be able to do it next year and the year after."It's important for the people of the Consett area to have events to look forward to and also to show off the town in its best colours."
Family-run business AH Events organised the festival on behalf of the trust.Manager Scott Hillary said it brought a lot of people to Consett and showed the town off "in a very positive light". "I think it's very important. I think the event will grow and grow as more people become aware of it," Mr Hillary said. "It's something that we want in the annual calendar."
Holly Knight, marketing and youth coordinator at the Hub Consett, a cafe and community space helping support neurodivergent people in business, said it was "absolutely fantastic"."It gives a great opportunity to present local businesses such as ourselves," she said. Ms Knight also said it had been "really nice" to speak to the community and having a stall at the festival helped the business make new connections. "It's definitely already starting to pay off a little bit," she said. "Any event that brings Consett together is more than welcome."Mr O'Connor said the events would help show the changing picture of Consett as a new hospital and surrounding developments start to emerge on the race's route.
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