Organisers of E-Bike Grand Prix visit Dubai Sports Council to discuss preparations

Gulf Today, Staff Reporter

The organising team of the recently-announced E-Bike Grand Prix (EBK GP) visited Dubai Sports Council to discuss preparations for the path-breaking new series, which will be flagged later this year with Dubai hosting the opening race.

Saeed Hareb, Secretary General of Dubai Sports Council, met the EBK GP team in the presence of Nasser Al Rahma, Assistant Secretary General of the Council, and Khalid Al Awar, Director of the Council’s Events Department.

The EBK GP delegation was led by Andy Moss, the founder of the Series and CEO, and included Judith Rowan, Global Host City Director at EBK GP, Massimo Fogliati, Elena Castorina, Anna Montorsi and Dylan Moss.

EBK GP is an exhilarating new international cycling series showcasing ground-breaking E-Bike technology, whilst working with global host cities to raise awareness of climate change challenges; seeking to mobilise citizens and promote cleaner, greener, healthier cities.

The series will take place in cities around the world, with races along public roads, showcasing iconic landmarks and cultural sites, as part of a high-speed, thrilling sporting spectacle. The races will be broadcast internationally via television and digital media.

Dubai Sports Council has been in communication with the UK-based organisers of the EBK GP for the past year and as the clock ticks towards the opening race in Dubai in late 2022, the EBK GP bosses have flown in to meet Dubai Sports Council’s top officials, who will facilitate their meetings with other government and private-sector entities for the start of the GP.

Hareb said: “We are thrilled to host the opening leg of the first-ever E-Bike Grand Prix Series – the fastest and most technologically advanced cycle sport in the world. Dubai is one of the world’s most pioneering cities, and is the embodiment of possibility and innovation, and there are clear synergies between our city’s vision and this ground-breaking series, especially when we talk about sustainability and gender-equality.”

Dubai has been announced as the firs host city of the series, which will see 10 two-day GPs being held in different cities around the world - including cities in Europe, United States, South Africa, South Korea, China and Turkey. The one-hour criterium-style races will feature 10 competing franchise teams, each fielding two cyclicts - one male and one female. Gender equality is central to the series, with both male and female competitions contributing equally to the team’s overall score.

Each track will feature specially designed inclines, or “power zones”, as well as intermediate sprints and eliminations, and teams will not be allowed to recharge the batteries between the Team Time Trial (TTT) on day one, and the Grand Prix on day two. The TTT will decide the starting groups for the GP.

BMC Switzerland are the exclusive bike partner of EBK GP and they are building an innovative new E-Bike for the series, which combines traditional cycling capability with battery-powered technology creating the fastest, most technologically advanced, and environmentally friendly cycle sport in the world.

The rider line-up for the series is expected to feature “world-class athletes”, and many World Tour professional cycling teams have expressed their interest in the series.