Mountain bikes to crank up Cairns world exposure and leave a local legacy

##MP##

Hundreds of millions of people will be looking at Cairns next month when the city hosts Crankworx, the world’s most watched mountain bike event.

Trail builders are finalising the new pump and slalom tracks, which post-event will remain open to the public as an ongoing community benefit.

In a new coup, the event has now also been locked in for next year.

All of the action at the upgraded Smithfield Mountain Bike Park will be broadcast globally alongside coverage of the attractions of Cairns and the surrounding region.

##BA##

Speaking at the Bike Park today, Tourism Tropical North Queensland (TTNQ) CEO Mark Olsen said the Crankworx event is a great opportunity for Cairns to get the world’s attention.

“We are here seeing a vision and a dream come out of the ground, hosting one of the most watched mountain bike events on the planet.

“More than 370 million people will get to hear and see Cairns welcomed into the Crankworx family.

##PQ##

“We’re going to be looking out on the world’s oldest rainforest, lived in by the world’s longest continuous culture, with the Great Barrier Reef and this incredible tropical city just a stone’s throw away.

“That is what Crankworx got excited about when they came to Australia to look at the opportunity.”

Crankworx began in 2004 and has grown into an international four-stop tour of mountain bike racing.

Smithfield is the fourth stop for the 2022 tour, which will also be visiting Innsbruck, Whistler, and Rotorua.

The park has trails through the world’s oldest rainforest and has been hosting World UCI Mountain Bike Championships since 2014.

Crankworx has been working with stakeholders since 2018 to bring the event to Australia. FNQ mountain bike pioneer and trail builder, Glen Jacobs, had a key role in securing the event.

“Cairns is one of the only mountain bike destinations in the world that has rainforest," he said.

"The reef is there, and the airport is only 15 minutes away.

##PQ2##

“It’s like peanut butter, the Smithfield soil, to actually shape all the courses and make something different.

“There’s a lot of creativity involved here. This is going to be the latest and greatest course in the world.

“It is going to put Cairns on the map.”

Crankworx will be at Smithfield from 5 to 9 October.

This project received grant funding from the Australian Government under Austrade’s Recovery for Regional Tourism program, an initiative of the $1 billion COVID-19 Relief and Recovery Fund.

Collaborators also include Tourism and Events Queensland, Tourism Tropical North Queensland, Cairns Regional Council, AusCycling, Yirrigandji Traditional Owners, James Cook University and Cairns Mountain Bike Club.