The Cycling Road World Championships will be held in Brussels in 2030, co-organiser Flanders Classics confirmed on Friday afternoon.
This will be the 11th time the World Championships take place in Belgium, but the first time in Brussels.
The Belgian capital submitted its bid last Spring.
The fact that, in six years, Belgium will celebrate its 200th anniversary, added symbolic weight to the bid to host the event, which the Belgian capital submitted in Spring 2023.
Brussels has previously hosted international cycling events. Five years ago, it was the starting point for the Tour de France, commemorating the 50th anniversary of Eddy Merckx’s first Tour victory.
Three years ago, the World Championships were successfully held in Flanders. Over a million spectators attended the time trials between Knokke-Heist and Brugge, and the road races, starting in Antwerp or Leuven and culminating in Leuven.
Belgium will host the World Championships again just nine years later, which is unusual. “This is a special occasion,” outgoing Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said at a press event at Brussels City Hall.
“Belgium’s 200th anniversary and our expertise in organising cycling events played key roles,” Prime Minister De Croo added. “The world was impressed by what we achieved in Leuven, and we look forward to another grand celebration.”
