Challenged Athletes Foundation to host USA Cycling para-cycling road national championships
Events over the July 8-11 weekend include a road race, time trial, criterium, and relay.
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Elite adaptive cyclists from across the country will gather in Boise, Idaho this weekend to compete in the USA Cycling para-cycling road national championships.
The July 8-11 event series will be the last domestic racing opportunity before the Tokyo 2021 Paralympic Games. The series is a partnership between Challenged Athletes Foundation (CAF), USA Cycling (USAC), and US Paralympics.
To build the field of participating athletes, CAF has funded over 60 individual travel grants and the largest prize purse in the history of para-cycling events.
“We are thrilled to partner with USA Cycling and US Paralympics to continue to expand competitive opportunities for our athletes to showcase their spirit and strength,” said CAF-Idaho Regional Director Jennifer Skeesick. “Taking place just two months before Tokyo and including the nation’s best adaptive cyclists across all categories and terrains, we are excited to showcase Idaho as an adaptive sports destination and raise the bar for adaptive cycling specifically. We are extremely grateful to the J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Family Foundation for supporting our vision.”
The weekend will showcase four separate national championship events, including the road race, time trial, criterium, and relay. It will be the first time four USA Cycling para-cycling road national championships have been held in a single location, allowing the athletes to focus less on travel and more on their performance.
In addition to individual cyclists, the July national championship events will mark the second Idaho appearance by the CAF’s women’s handcycling team. Formed by CAF in 2019 after two-time national handcycling champion Carlos Moleda identified the need to raise the profile of women competing in the sport at the highest level, the team of six female adaptive cyclists competes at different levels and classifications.
Team members Oksana Masters, a four-time Paralympian, Alicia Dana, a two-time Paralympian, along with Gabrielle Platt, Danielle Watson, Lera Deoderlein, and Ryan Reed will be competing during the weekend.
The weekend’s events will be broadcast on a livestream.
Weekend Schedule of Events (all times listed in Mountain Daylight Time):
Friday, July 9
9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Time Trial National Championship — Glenns Ferry
1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. CAF-Idaho Adaptive Cycling Clinic — Boise
4:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. Time Trial Podium, Cycling and Community Event — Downtown Boise
Saturday, July 10
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Crit National Championship — Downtown Boise
12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. Inclusive Kids Ride with Muffy Davis & Kristen Armstrong, presented with Mission43 — Downtown Boise
6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. Relay National Championship — Downtown Boise
Sunday, July 11
9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Road Race National Championship — Melba
5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Closing Ceremonies — Boise Zoo