Cycling Canada to ban TT bikes for juniors at the road nationals
The move aims to help fairness and accessibility for under-17 and under-19 racers
Photo by:
Sirotti
Some big changes are coming for junior and under-17 riders at the 2025 nationals. They will not be allowed to race on specialized time trial bikes. They will also not be allowed to use extension bars or disc wheels.
According to the governing body, effective 2025, there will be a change in the regulations regarding TT equipment for the under-17 and junior categories at the Canadian road championships.
Rules for 2025
According to Cycling Canada, “The following equipment restrictions, modified from their initial implementation for under-17-only in 2024, will be formally enforced for both under-17 and junior men’s and women’s categories beginning with the 2025 Canadian road championships:
• Only one bike frame may be used for under-17 and junior categories.
• Extension bars will not be allowed for under-17 and junior categories.
• Disc wheels will not be allowed for under-17 and junior categories.”
The reasoning for the change is to “ensure consistency, fairness, accessibility, increase participation and talent identification, and improve transport efficiency.”
Slow down the arms race?
In February, we ran an opinion piece by Michael Barry—a former pro and father of a pretty fast junior, Ashlin Barry—who echoed this idea.
Barry said that a well-engineered time trial bicycle can make the difference between a rider finishing first in a race or twentieth. Aerodynamics and other technical aspects of bicycles significantly influence the outcome of any race. But when the rider is alone in the wind, the margins are significant. With a bad position or slow bicycle, the strongest rider won’t be a contender in a time trial.
Furthermore, at the professional level, where teams are sponsored by bike brands and have financial resources to allocate to testing and analysis, this is part of the game. Yet, at the junior level (under 19 years old), where riders are on teams with limited budgets or are self-funded, the expense and effect narrow the funnel of riders coming into an already expensive sport.
Teenagers, and their parents, he argued, shouldn’t need to be concerned with purchasing a $15,000 time trial bike, on which they may race only a handful of times in a season, to be competitive. The pursuit of speed through aerodynamics can be a financial arms race.