Bringing Back the Big Events

The world’s largest, most-watched mountain biking event is coming to Cairns this year, bringing with it 1200 athletes, volunteers, media, sponsorships and nearly 35,000 spectators. Gwen Luscombe explores how and why Crankworx chose the tropical city for its fourth stop on the 2022 world tour

Smithfield Mountain Bike Park with its high-profile rainforest trails through the world’s oldest rainforest will see biking athletes compete over five days from 5th to 9th October. Cairns has been locked in to host Crankworx through to 2024.

The annual competition takes place across a variety of locations globally with Whistler, Canada being the most famous. The multi-day super event centres around the slopestyle and downhill disciplines, drawing the biggest names in the sport with huge sponsors and prizes.

Crankworx will be produced by local events company GTR Events, already well-known for their work at the Cairns 2017 UCI World Championships.

In a statement, GTR Events’ Matt Hilton said that following the UCI World Championships, the organisation was keen to bring another World Championship to Australia.

Crankworx Whistler happened to be on while GTR Chairman Daryl Herbert was on a Canadian holiday. He met with Crankworx World Tour Managing Director Darren Kinnaird to discuss the possibilities of putting Australia on the radar.

Organisers weighed up locations, with Victoria’s Warburton - which offers world-class biking trails - also in the running. Ultimately, a combination of the environment effects statements process and a funding opportunity from Tourism Tropical North Queensland, presented Cairns as a frontrunner.

Advising that the team had been working with Cairns stakeholders since 2018 to bring the event to Australia, Kinnaird says “the collaboration among stakeholders including Tourism and Events Queensland, Tourism Tropical North Queensland, Cairns Regional Council, AusCycling, Yirrigandji Traditional Owners, James Cook University and Cairns Mountain Bike Club has been crucial to bringing Crankworx to Cairns.”

Crankworx will not only be an elite level event but will also include a festival, trade show and opportunities to engage young riders.

Hilton explains “what I like most about a Crankworx event, is its accessibility to all ages and abilities. Kidsworx is such a cracking concept, and CW Next (under 18 category for kids) is such an amazing category to really push up-and-coming athletes through the ranks, and be seen on the world scale. There are not too many events that provide that.” Why Cairns? As Kinnaird explains “Crankworx Cairns will give our athletes an additional fourth competitive stop and will bring the ultimate mountain biking experience to our fans in Australia while showcasing the Wet Tropics Rainforest and Great Barrier Reef to mountain biking fans around the world.

Member for Cairns and Queensland Assistant Tourism Minister Michael Healy echoed the statement, saying that

Crankworx Cairns would bring even more global exposure to Tropical North Queensland, commenting “the 2022 Crankworx World Tour coincides with our comprehensive overseas campaign to bring international visitors back to the Tropical North after Covid.

“We’re at the start of a golden decade of opportunity ahead of Queensland’s 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.”

Going on to say that events such as Crankworx demonstrate the region’s ability to host world-class events and showcase Cairns as a destination to an international audience, Hilton stated “where else can you watch the biggest names in the sport throw down, surrounded by the best backdrop in the world - the historic rainforest and the Great Barrier Reef?

“It’s a chance not only to showcase the trails that have brought the world’s best athletes from all over the world to Cairns, but also the destination, the culture and heritage and our good old fashioned Aussie hospitality.”

Cairns Regional Councillor Rhonda Coghlan said the inclusion of Cairns on the Crankworx World Tour was another string in the bow for the city’s growing reputation as a premier sports destination, noting “to be part of arguably the world’s biggest mountain bike tour underlines the region’s reputation for putting on world-class sporting events.

“Cairns has a long association with mountain biking, with the iconic Smithfield Mountain Bike Park, set in a spectacular rainforest environment, having hosted four international events dating back to 1996.

“The prospect of watching some of the world’s best mountain bike exponents in action later this year is quite exciting and there is no doubt that with the calibre of athlete on show, this event will attract thousands of people to our city and contribute significantly to our economy.” Regenerating Tourism Dollars It’s no secret that the tourism and events industry was among the hardest hit by the pandemic and events like Crankworx bring not only global publicity to the region, but much needed tourism dollars. A successful start to regenerating the industry.

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

Tourism Tropical North Queensland (TTNQ) Chief Executive Mark Olsen said one-quarter of the footage to be televised across the world will be devoted to showcasing Cairns and the Great Barrier Reef to encourage visitation resulting in millions of dollars in publicity.

He states “in addition to an anticipated 31,000 bed nights for our region, Crankworx will deliver a worldwide audience with the global eyeballs on Cairns further driven by a partnership with Red Bull Media House to broadcast five live finals globally and a post-event 60-minute telecast to 17.8 million viewers.”

AusCycling Chief Executive Marne Fechner also welcomed the Crankworx World Tour coming to Cairns for the next two years advising that “(this) announcement is the culmination of a huge amount of work that began years ago when Cairns was identified as the perfect backdrop for an international event of this magnitude.

“We now look forward to working with the many teams that will bring this great spectacle to life and to ensuring that there is a tangible legacy for mountain bikers in years to come.’’ The Venue, The Legacies A purpose-built venue for events such as Crankworx, Smithfield Mountain Bike Park is the oldest mountain bike park in the country with an iconic rainforest trail network that’s no stranger to hosting elite downhill racing. Offering more than 60 kilometres of green, blue and black-rated (or easy, moderate and advanced respectively) trails that wind through the rainforest, jagged ranges and overlooking the Great Barrier Reef, its proximity to the Cairns airport, (just 20 minutes away) makes it equally accessible.

The park played host to the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup in 1995, and again in 2014 and 2016. It also hosted the UCI World Mountain Bike Championships in both 1996 and 2017.

Year-round, several bike-hire businesses are located close to the park and commercial shuttle services support its most famous downhill runs, including the World Cup and Nationals DH trails.

While the trails will no doubt be different from the European grass fields that have hosted the event in past, the event will bring with it legacy infrastructure for riders to enjoy following the event.

Hilton concludes “part of bringing Crankworx to Australia is creating a legacy, and providing more opportunities to ride these courses more often.

“Part of our strategy is to leave behind a world-class pump track and dual slalom course that the local mountain bike club or national sporting body can utilise year-round for events. The layer of infrastructure that an event like Crankworx leaves behind is so valuable.” Gwen Luscombe is Director of the Ideas Library and a frequent contributor to Australasian Leisure Management on tourism, business events, technology and hospitality.