Latest news with #Criterium
Chicago Tribune
28-07-2025
- Climate
- Chicago Tribune
13th annual Northwestern Medicine Lake Bluff Criterium sees over 500 Cyclists compete on Saturday
Under the threat of rain, over 500 racers took part in the 13th annual Northwestern Medicine Lake Bluff Criterium in downtown Lake Bluff on Saturday, for an all-day racing event from 11 a.m. until 8 p.m. The Northwestern Medicine Lake Bluff Criterium was the ninth race in the Chicago Grit 10-race series, offering courses across greater Chicagoland, from West Dundee to Winfield, Elgin, and Fulton Market in Chicago, and taking place over 10 consecutive days. 'Lake Bluff not only provides a bucolic backdrop for Saturday's race, but this is a town where residents rally around their public events, like the block party tradition which takes place on the Village Green in tandem with the Criterium,' Drew Irvin, administrator for the Village of Lake Bluff, said. Saturday's full-day racing lineup featured 9 pro and amateur men's and women's bicycle races with cyclists from more than 42 states and many foreign countries. 'Over the years, the Criterium brings thousands of cyclists and sporting enthusiasts into our town on race day, elevating exposure to our entertainment and business district, and giving little Lake Bluff a chance to showcase all it has to offer,' Irvin said. Jan Van Mieghem of Evanston says he is an avid racer with two sons in Saturday's first race, in the Men's Novice category. 'We've been watching the weather closely; the threat of rain can make the course more challenging, and if the corners get slick, it really increases the crash threat,' Van Mieghem said. Ron Oesterlein is co-director of the Northwestern Medicine Lake Bluff Criterium and owner of Lake Bluff Hub & Cycle. 'The Grit strength race is so exciting to watch, every 45 seconds or so, you can see 100 racers come past you – the racers just fly by,' Oesterlein said. Families were encouraged to join in the Criterium fun by participating in the Family Fun Ride, sponsored by Lake Forest Bank & Trust, Lake Bluff, at 6:15 p.m. on the pro racecourse. 'Biking really brings our community together, and the Family Fun race is a big deal for the kids because they get to experience a professionally run track, and the high energy of the crowd — quite a thrilling moment for them,' Oesterlein said. Oesterlein says Northwestern Medicine was the title sponsor and official healthcare provider for the Lake Bluff Criterium. 'We believe good health starts with strong, healthy communities and are hopeful that this world-class sporting event inspires our neighbors to lead more active, health-focused lifestyles.' Seamus Collins, president of Northwestern Medicine Lake Forest Hospital, said in a news release. Northwestern Medicine also provided on-site healthcare professionals to care for racers and spectators in need of medical attention, all part of their first-aid station set up at the Lake Bluff Fire Station. In addition to Northwestern Medicine, title sponsor for the 13th consecutive year, other sponsors included: pace car sponsor Knauz Automotive Group, Lake Forest Bank & Trust, Lake Bluff; ULINE; Lake Forest Country Day School; DiVinci Painters; Pasquesi Home & Garden; and EJ's Place Restaurant. The Lake Bluff Crit Party took place on the Village Green from 4 until 8 p.m., featuring live music by the Nic Barnum Band, Lake Bluff food vendors Bangkok Tokyo and Duffer's Pub, plus the Sweet Memories ice cream truck. Craft beer from Nightshade and Dark's Pandemonium Brewery – with a special batch of IPA brewed just for the event called 'Drunk and in Charge of a Bicycle,' with a portion of the proceeds from beer sales donated to the Roberti Community House in Waukegan. Twenty-year-old Marcus Van Mieghem of Evanston took first place in the Men's Novice race. 'I learned early on how important it is to try and conserve energy during the race while staying among the group of lead racers,' Van Mieghem said. 'I prepared for the Criterium, with hard 20-minute training to build a strong base and build the stamina to take on the longer 30-minute course,' Van Mieghem added.
CTV News
15-06-2025
- Sport
- CTV News
Ottawa Italian Fest wraps up with racing tradition
The 150-metre mark at the Preston Criterium, one of Canada's oldest cycling races, on June 15, 2025. (Josh Marano/CTV News Ottawa) Bike Race Ottawa's Preston Criterium took over the streets of Little Italy Sunday. It's the final event of Italian Week in Ottawa, a racing tradition for over half a century and one of the oldest cycling races in Canada. Hundreds of cyclists thrilled the crowd with a series of races from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. All ages and abilities were welcome, and prizes were awarded to the top finishers. Ottawa native Darryl Arvai took home top spot in the CAT C/D race, which started the day. He finished in the top three in last year's event and says being able to have his two sons Jacob and Rivers by his side this year makes it extra special. 'It's amazing, they both cycle and we do it together often,' Arvai said. '(Rivers) is racing this morning, it's a great way to spend Father's Day.' Kris Westwood is an organizer for the event with Bike Race Ottawa. He says the event is one he looks forward to every year, welcoming in residents as well as riders from other cities. 'It's action all day long but what's really fun is being able to have the young kids, 13- to 15-year-olds, who are then also able to cheer on their hero's,' Westwood said. Westwood adds this year marked the return of vendors, with tents set up along Preston Street for food, drinks and other biking merchandise. This year marks the 51st anniversary of the Criterium. The event is the second oldest running bicycle race in Canada.
France 24
09-06-2025
- Sport
- France 24
Milan grabs Dauphine stage victory and overall lead
The 1.93m (6-foot-4) 87kg Milan had to battle to keep up on a hilly 204.6km run through central France from Premilhat. When the pack hit the home straight, he rocketed away from his rivals to collect a 10-second victory bonus and the yellow jersey. "That was really tough," said Milan. "I was dropped at one point and I was really on the limit, but I have to say thanks to my teammates because they brought me back and guided me until the last metres." Briton Fred Wright was second and Dutchman Mathieu van der Poel third. Pogacar and his main rivals for overall victory, both in the Criterium and the Tour de France, Jonas Vingegaard and Remco Evenepoel, rolled home safely in the main pack just behind Mlan. Pogacar, who collected a 10-second bonus on Sunday, has the same overall time as Mian, but braked hard in the final metres to surrender places and hand the Italian the tie-break edge and the daily media responsibilities that go with the yellow jersey. The eight-day race, with four hilly stages, a time trial and three final days in the Alps, has attracted an A-list roster of 154 riders from 22 teams. It offers Tour de France contenders a chance to hone their form and gain a psychological edge before the main event starts on July 5. Pogacar, who won his third Tour de France last year ending Vingegaard's two-year reign, had struck the first blow the previous day, edging the Dane to take the opening stage and the overall lead. On Monday, support riders for Pogacar's Team UAE and Vingegaard's Visma spent much of the stage jostling, sometimes angrily, for position at the front of the pack. The stage was briefly animated when local-boy Romain Bardet, riding the final race of his 14-year professional career, launched an attack on the last small climb just before a corner where his fan club was waiting with a huge banner. The 34-year-old was caught with 10 kilometres to go as Milan's Lidl-Trek team took control. The Frenchman will have another chance on Tuesday when stage three starts from his home town Brioude for a hilly 207.2km run to Charantonnay.
France 24
30-05-2025
- Sport
- France 24
Danish veteran Fuglsang to quit after Giro
"The last stage of the Giro on Sunday will be my last race for Israel Premier Tech," the Dane said in a video released by his team. "I've had a fantastic career that has given me much more than I ever dreamed of. But all good things come to an end and it's time for me to spend more time with my family and make way for the young riders." After beginning his professional career on mountain bikes, Fuglsang made a successful switch to the road. He won the Criterium in 2017 and 2019 when he also won his first Monument, the Liege-Bastogne-Liege. The following year he added the Tour of Lombardy. In recent years Fuglsang has played the role of road captain for riders such as Canadian Derek Gee, fourth overall in the Giro at the start of stage 19 on Friday. "When I extended my contract with the team, we agreed on a seven-month contract to support our general classification project with Derek Gee," he explained. "It's been a fantastic adventure, and I'm happy to finish at a level where I can still play a part and give something back to the team. While Fuglsang is closing his career with Israel Premier Tech, Fuglsang said he might make a final farewell by riding one last time in the Tour of Denmark, which he has won three times, in August.
Straits Times
12-05-2025
- Automotive
- Straits Times
No gears, no brakes, Formula Fixed out to fast-forward U.S. cycling
No gears, no brakes, Formula Fixed out to fast-forward U.S. cycling In the fluorescent glow of a re-purposed indoor go-kart track, cyclists hurtle around hairpin corners, their fixed-gear bikes offering a stark binary choice: perfect execution or intimate acquaintance with the barriers. Welcome to the world of Formula Fixed, a new adrenaline-fuelled cycling format organisers believe can finally give the two-wheeled sport the street-cred it lacks in the United States. "There are no real professional leagues that have cohesive storytelling and that's a shame, it's frustrating. So we're setting out to fix that," James Grady, co-founder of the venture with wife Clare, told Reuters. "94 percent of people in the States know how to ride a bike, but the sport's ability to convert that familiarity into fandom is fundamentally broken." Formula Fixed, which launched its inaugural Pro Series later this year, is cycling stripped back to the raw. No gears, no brakes, just leg-pumping action that fuses messenger culture, video game aesthetics and athletic prowess. Unlike traditional formats, whether road racing or track, fans and TV audiences of Formula Fixed won't need to be cycling aficionados to follow what's going on. "We're not here to tweak the old model," James says. "We're here to tear it down and rebuild it from scratch with culture, inclusivity, and energy at the core." The Gradys have been putting on events for more than a decade, including the Mission Crit in San Francisco -- a popular Criterium race around the city streets. Formula Fixed has evolved that format for retro-fitted arenas where fans can watch 100% of the action without having to move from their seat. "Mission Crit was getting more and more riders and more and more spectators, but it was hard to monetise because there's no front door," Clare says. "Fans at city crit races see maybe 10% of the action. I wouldn't want to pay for that." James says in the crowded sports landscape, spectators demand a more immersive experience, pointing to the popularity of golf's arena-based TGL and basketball's Unrivaled. Attempts to revolutionise cycling have been made before. The National Cycling League (NCL) with city-based franchise teams and celebrity-investments was launched a few years ago but soon ran into trouble and collapsed. The Gradys feel they have found the perfect recipe though and judging by a sold-out showcase event last year in California that was backed by brands such as Red Bull and Rapha and generated 5.6 million digital impressions, they may be right. "Whether you're in-venue, watching on-screen, or on your phone, you're going to feel the speed, the energy, and the emotion of every corner and crash," Clare says. The series will predominantly attract those from America's fixed-gear bike messenger scene rather than WorldTour pros, but the door is wide open for international competitors. "The key is it will really resonate with American audiences," James says. Formula Fixed will launch with two two-day qualifying events in Doylestown, Pennsylvania and San Francisco in September with the best male and female riders competing in a 2026 Pro Series. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
