Marco Polo Cycling Fund?

[Carl Sundquist]

From cyclingnews.com:

"The World Wide Cycling Foundation has founded the Marco Polo Cycling Fund. The fund aims to help
talented riders from poor countries to get a chance in Europe. The mission of the Marco Polo Cycling
Club (managed by World Wide Cycling) is to give talented cyclists from non-traditional cycling
countries a chance to develop as professionals. The Marco Polo Cycling Fund is designed to help the
club accomplish its mission."

Would those riders be from countries like this?

'Playing Captain': Nathan Dahlberg, New Zealand Cory Lange, Canada Felix Rohrbach, Germany Kashi
Leuchs, New Zealand Kay Kermer, Germany Michael Carter, USA

6 out of the 12 riders on the roster.

Is this like the cornfield crit circuit on a global basis?

 

[Stewart Fleming]

Carl Sundquist wrote:
> From cyclingnews.com:
>
> "The World Wide Cycling Foundation has founded the Marco Polo Cycling Fund. The fund aims to help
> talented riders from poor countries to get a chance in Europe. The mission of the Marco Polo
> Cycling Club (managed by World Wide Cycling) is to give talented cyclists from non-traditional
> cycling countries a chance to develop as professionals. The Marco Polo Cycling Fund is designed to
> help the club accomplish its mission."

This has been going for quite a while now. Originally I think it was SE Asian based and quite a
number of riders from down here in the south of NZ also picked up on it. It was the vehicle that
Kashi Leuchs used to get some international racing experience, as did Craig Thomson now racing for a
Belgian amateur team (which is where Gordon McCauley ended up too). Don't know about the
characterisation of "poor countries" as such...

> Would those riders be from countries like this?
>
> 'Playing Captain': Nathan Dahlberg, New Zealand Cory Lange, Canada Felix Rohrbach, Germany Kashi
> Leuchs, New Zealand Kay Kermer, Germany Michael Carter, USA

Nathan did a lot of the ground work; Kashi got a stagiere contract last year with Saeco. It operated
as a kind of voluntary sign-up "global cycling club" in the early stages.

> Is this like the cornfield crit circuit on a global basis?

You mean the $0K dream? Nobody gets paid that's for sure. But they have raced some high-profile
tours and that's always good racing experience. STF

 

[Chris II]

"Carl Sundquist" <[email protected]> wrote in news:[email protected]:

> From cyclingnews.com:
>
> "The World Wide Cycling Foundation has founded the Marco Polo Cycling Fund. The fund aims to help
> talented riders from poor countries to get a chance in Europe. The mission of the Marco Polo
> Cycling Club (managed by World Wide Cycling) is to give talented cyclists from non-traditional
> cycling countries a chance to develop as professionals. The Marco Polo Cycling Fund is designed to
> help the club accomplish its mission."
>
>
> Would those riders be from countries like this?
>
> 'Playing Captain': Nathan Dahlberg, New Zealand Cory Lange, Canada Felix Rohrbach, Germany Kashi
> Leuchs, New Zealand Kay Kermer, Germany Michael Carter, USA
>
> 6 out of the 12 riders on the roster.
>
> Is this like the cornfield crit circuit on a global basis?
>
>
>
>

no you listed members of the Trade Team.

This fund would be for Riders from Countries like Indoesnia to be able race in Europe and no go
into debt.

 

[Carl Sundquist]

"Stewart Fleming" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>
> > Is this like the cornfield crit circuit on a global basis?
>
> You mean the $0K dream? Nobody gets paid that's for sure. But they have raced some high-profile
> tours and that's always good racing
experience.
> STF
>
The cornfield crit circuit is where you go poaching on smaller races, particularly if there is a
big race that is drawing the top riders somewhere else. You would suck up to the race organizer for
housing, free entry, etc., then grab every prime and prize you possibly can before heading to the
next race. Globally would be the same thing, but including airplane fares and maybe some start
money. Doing races like the Tour of Greece, Presidency Tour Turkey, Tour of Korea, Qingzhang
Plateau Race would fit that bill.