Quebec City, Tuesday, May 5, 2020 – In light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and Government of Quebec rules prohibiting events from being held until August 31, Cycling Canada, Quebec Summer Events Corporation and event producer Gestev have been forced to cancel the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup that was scheduled to take place at Mont-Sainte-Anne August 21–23, 2020.

“Our priority above all else is the health and safety of the athletes, volunteers, employees and thousands of spectators who travel to be a part of Vélirium every year,” said Gabriel Fontaine Leclerc, General manager at Gestev. “Too many questions remain unanswered for us to pursue the possibility of postponing the event until the fall, and considering the sheer complexity of such an undertaking and the major challenges involved for our partners it is not feasible for us to explore this option. Let’s consider this a rain check for 2021.”

For Cycling Canada, this decision is the latest in a series of postponements and cancellations of international competitions across the country in the coming months. “Here at Cycling Canada we are obviously disappointed to miss a huge annual event like the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup at Mont-Sainte-Anne, but the health and safety of our athletes and members will always be our priority. We all have a duty to support the efforts of the public health authorities to mitigate the transmission of this virus,” said Mathieu Boucher, Head of Development and Operations at Cycling Canada.

The organizers would like to thank everyone, everywhere who has been involved in preparing for this year’s Vélirium, which would have been the 30th UCI-sanctioned event to be held at Mont-Sainte-Anne since 1991.

http://www.velirium.com/en