Huge Crowd Witness Historic Racing At Dalby

Over 11,000 visitors were present at Dalby Forest last weekend as the 2010 UCI Mountain Bike Cross-Country World Cup arrived in Yorkshire for three days of scintillating off-road action. History was made as the thousands of spectators watched the series closest ever finish bring down the curtain on three days in Yorkshire. Nino Schurter was the victor in a nail biting finish in the men's elite race, just one memorable moment in a weekend that also saw GB show a glimpse of things to come, winning two bronze medals in the Junior Men's and Women's Elite races. Dalby Forest provided a spectacular backdrop for the weekend's racing as fans took advantage of the ease of access to the course, watching the action in spectator hubs such as Medusa’s drop and Worry Gill, whilst never being more than a few minutes walk from the event village, its big screen and the hustle and bustle of the busy trade and tech areas. Jonny Clay, Cycle Sport and Membership Director at British Cycling said: "This inaugural event has been everything we could have hoped for. The response of the public, the teams, the UCI, and all our key partners has been overwhelmingly positive and even the Yorkshire weather was great over the weekend! Summarising the different elements of the weekend Jonny went on to say: "Pickering on Friday was a fascinating spectacle, Saturday allowed the public to ride the World Cup course in Dalby Dare and we had Annie Last and Steve James collect bronze medals in their races, whilst the elite racing on Sunday captured everything great about Cross-Country Mountain Biking." "Dalby was the perfect setting to stage the return of the Cross Country World Cup to England for the first time in over a decade. It's the latest in a string of major cycling events in the UK that will help us to develop the sport of cycling here in the UK from grass roots through to the World's best. The 2010 UCI Mountain Bike Cross-Country World Cup at Dalby is just one of a number of major events organised and promoted by British Cycling on the international calendar. "The successes of this World Cup extend way beyond what you saw here in the forest this weekend. The commercial benefits to the region, the legacy for the grass roots of the sport and the commercial success of the event as a whole are the building blocks of sustainable events in the future. "With the backing of the UCI we look forward to growing this event here in Yorkshire and establishing the venue as a must have for the World Cup circuit." All the excitement of the weekend was relived on British Eurosport 2 last night. For a full report on the weekend's racing at Dalby please visit www.yorkshiremtbworldcup.co.uk. Pictures are available by clicking here www.flickr.com/photos/britishcycling/sets/.