London: The 2017 Track Cycling World Championships will be staged at the Hong Kong Velodrome as the UCI continues its attempt to grow the sport in Asia.
UCI president Brian Cookson made the announcement on the penultimate day of the 2016 World Championships at London's Lee Valley VeloPark after the Hong Kong facility, which seats 3,000 spectators and was completed in late 2013, impressed the governing body in hosting a World Cup event.
"There is a new velodrome there, a superb facility, and we have had a test event there in terms of the World Cup event earlier this year which was a great success," said Cookson of the HK$1.1 billion ($147m; £99.6m) facility.
"There is a good organising committee locally and a lot of commitment. We already have an Olympic medalist from Hong Kong in the women's Keirin (Lee Wai Sze) so there is a lot of potential there as well. We are going to have an exciting time.
"It will be over the Easter weekend, 12-16 April, next year so a little later than usual but it will work out well. A new venue and the track World Championships have been held in Asia," added Cookson, as the event returns to Asia for the first time since 1990, when it was staged in Japan.
The late date for the Championships -- some six weeks later than this year's event in London -- has been chosen to accommodate local organisers who are conscious of the Chinese New Year.
The World Championships will also tie in with celebrations to mark the 20th anniversary of Hong Kong's handover from the United Kingdom to China on July 1, 2017.
AFP
