HSBC UK Official Sponsor of the 2019 UCI Road World Championships

The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) is delighted to announce that HSBC UK is the Official Sponsor of the 2019 UCI Road World Championships which will be held in Yorkshire, UK, from 22nd to 29th September 2019.

This autumn will see the UCI Road World Championships make their return to the UK for the first time since 1982. Millions of spectators are expected on the streets of Harrogate and along Yorkshire’s roads, while a TV audience of over 250 million will be following the 1,500 riders, who will travel from 90 countries in search of the prestigious UCI World Champion’s rainbow jersey.

The celebrations will begin on Saturday 21 September when - for the very first time - a UCI-sanctioned, one-day international para-cycling event will take place ahead of the Championships.

HSBC UK has been involved in cycling since 2017, as Lead Partner of British Cycling, the sport’s national governing body in Great Britain. The partnership seeks to embrace communities nationwide and works across the sport from participation at the grassroots to major organised cycling events through to the highest level of performance with the Great Britain Cycling Team. In teaming up with the 2019 UCI Road World Championships, HSBC UK is consolidating and continuing its support of our sport.

In entering into this partnership, which was concluded on behalf of the UCI by The Sports Consultancy (TSC), the UCI and HSBC UK will work together in setting up a number of events and activities for the public, in both the exhibition area and along the race routes.

“The support of HSBC UK is excellent news for what is our biggest event of the year,” said UCI President David Lappartient. “The fact that a partner of this size, one that is already involved in cycling, is sponsoring our 2019 Road World Championships is but another example of the confidence major brands have in our sport and our events.”

Luke Harper, HSBC UK’s Head of the British Cycling Partnership, said: “We are proud to be the Official Sponsor of the 2019 UCI Road World Championships as it extends our support for major organised cycling events in our country. Through our partnership with British Cycling we want to inspire 2 million people in the UK to ride a bike by 2020 so being part of the biggest cycling event of the year is a great way to encourage participation and excitement about getting onto two wheels. By shining a spot light on cycling, we hope to leave a lasting legacy whereby our country is greener, fitter and healthier.”

HSBC UK joins an extensive family of prestigious partners of the event, among them MAPEI, SHIMANO, TISSOT, Harrogate Spring Water, Yorkshire Tea, and Santini.

About the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI)Founded in 1900, in Paris (France), the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) is the worldwide governing body for cycling. It develops and oversees cycling in all its forms, for all people as a competitive sport, as a healthy recreational activity, as a means of transport, and also just for fun. he UCI manages and promotes the nine cycling disciplines: road, track, mountain bike, BMX – Racing and Freestyle –, paracycling, cyclo-cross, trials and indoor cycling. The UCI Mountain Bike World Cup was founded in 1991. Olympic cross-country and downhill competitions have since been held on several continents and across different age groups. More information on www.uci.org

About HSBC UKHSBC UK serves around 14.5 million customers across the UK, supported by 32,000 colleagues. HSBC UK offers a complete range of retail banking and wealth management to personal and private banking customers, as well as commercial banking for small to medium businesses and large corporates.

HSBC Holdings plcHSBC Holdings plc, the parent company of HSBC, is headquartered in London. HSBC serves customers worldwide from offices in 66 countries and territories in our geographical regions: Europe, Asia, North America, Latin America, and Middle East and North Africa. With assets of $2,659bn at 31 March 2019, HSBC is one of the world’s largest banking and financial services organisations.

About the 2019 UCI Road World ChampionshipsThe UCI Road World Championships have only been held in Great Britain on three previous occasions, the most recent of which was at Goodwood in 1982. The 2019 Championships will take place in Yorkshire between 22-29 September.

The UCI Road World Championships commence on Sunday 22 September with the maiden Mixed Team Time Trial Relay and the programme continues through to Sunday 29 September with Individual Time Trials and Road Races for Junior (17/18 years), Under 23 and Elite male and female riders.

The celebrations will begin on Saturday 21 September when - for the very first time - a UCI-sanctioned, one-day international para-cycling event will take place ahead of the Championships. The Yorkshire 2019 Para-Cycling International will act as a qualifier for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games and welcome entries from every Paralympic road racing classification.

Approximately 1,500 riders are set to compete in the UCI Road World Championships from 90 countries and the action will be beamed to a global TV audience of over 250 million.