Successfully completed the 22-year round of the lake race: Encountering a plateau city in the “green” movement
Author Qi Xiujuan Xue Di
July and August are the most beautiful seasons in Qinghai. By the lakeside of Qinghai, the azure lake water, cyan mountains, and sea of golden rapeseed flowers form a beautiful scenery like an oil painting.
The Qinghai Lake Tour International Road Cycling Race (the Tour of the Lake), which grew up on the shore of Qinghai Lake, is characterized by high altitude, high difficulty and high challenge, which makes the race particularly exciting. The race route design centers on Qinghai Lake and extends to surrounding areas. Since its establishment in 2002, it has continued to grow and become an international brand event with Chinese characteristics. It is also a “window” to promote cycling in Qinghai and China.
Included in world class competitions
In 2002, the Tournament around the lake was launched, with 102 athletes from 17 teams from 14 countries and regions participating. In 2004, the level of the event was upgraded from 2.5 to 2.3; in 2005, the Lake Race became the top event in Asia; in 2006, for the first time, the world‘s endangered animal Przewalski’s gazelle was used as the mascot.
In 2011, the event rode down the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and entered Gansu Province; in 2012, the race route covered the three provinces of Qinghai, Gansu and Ningxia until 2019, and the race distance exceeded 2,000 kilometers; in 2019, the Lake Tour applied to join the UCI (International Cycling Union) professional series Approved by UCI in 2020. The competition schedule was reduced from 13 days to 8 days, and the competition returned to the province.
In 2020, UCI adjusted the event structure of men’s professional road cycling, and divided UCI cycling road into World Tour, Professional Series and Continental Tour. The World Tour includes the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, the Tour de España, etc.; the professional series includes 2.HC level races and some 2.1 level races (such as the Tour de France, the International Road Cycling Tour around Hainan Island, etc.) competition, etc.).
The upgrade of the “Professional Series” has once again increased the value of the Tournament around the lake.
In 2021 and 2022, under the background requirements of the prevention and control of the new crown pneumonia epidemic, the participating teams are Chinese teams based on the “All China Class”. “The round-the-lake race is held in a hypoxic environment at a high altitude of more than 3,000 meters, which has the characteristics of Qinghai. Excluding the period of the new crown pneumonia epidemic in these years, it has already set a benchmark for bicycle races in various provinces and cities across the country.” The 22nd Tournament Qiu Fund, the technical advisor of the Executive Committee of the Lake Competition, said earlier.
In 2023, as the first competition after upgrading the UCI professional series, the Tournament around the lake will once again gather the attention of teams from all over the world. 154 athletes from 22 teams from four continents will gather at the plateau sports event. For the first time, the event will be broadcast live on TV.
Sports event, people’s festival and beautiful scenery
The design of the bicycle multi-day race stage is very important to make the round-the-lake race more attractive, enjoyable and challenging.
Along the way of the race around the lake, there are cities, villages, hills, grasslands, forests, lakes and other scenery in Qinghai, as well as scenic spots such as Qinghai Lake, the Yellow River, and Chaka Salt Lake. The live broadcast shows Qinghai today to the outside world. People of all ethnic groups also waited on the roadside early, and many herdsmen came riding on horses to see the beauty of the round-the-lake race up close.
When the round-the-lake race is integrated into urban life, its significance and value go far beyond the sports itself. The integrated development of cycling and tourism, leisure, commerce and other fields has continuously promoted the transformation and upgrading of cultural industry and consumption in Qinghai Province, and continuously extended the cycling industry chain.
“With the help of the round-the-lake competition, we have effectively reshaped the tourism image of Guide, and many tourists come here to see the style of ‘Guide Qing’ on the Yellow River in the World.” Said Sarna, deputy secretary of the Guide County Party Committee and county magistrate of Hainan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, especially It is a national fitness craze. It has become a new tourist fashion to invite friends of three or five to ride bicycles over the Laji Pass, gallop through Danshan Canyon, and rest on the banks of the Yellow River. In the first half of this year, the county’s tourist reception and tourism revenue reached 2.5 times that of the same period last year.
He Xicheng, the official photographer of the Lake Tournament, is a Chinese from Malaysia. He came to the Lake Tournament for the first time in 2016. In order to adapt to the high altitude, He Xicheng will do a lot of preparation and physical training before the game, so that he can travel through mountains and rivers and record the changes of the round-the-lake race through his own lens.
“From my perspective, I recorded the wonderful moments of the round-the-lake race and the moving stories on the field. I also used my camera to spread the beauty of Qinghai to the rest of the world, so that everyone can understand that China is such a beautiful place.” He Xicheng said.
Competition upgrade is an opportunity but also a challenge
Following the major international and domestic competitions, Qiu Jin said that he has the deepest relationship with the Lake Tournament, “I am fortunate to have participated in this competition from the first to the 22nd session, and the role has also changed. I have been a referee and a drug inspector… …It should be said that the Tournament around the lake has grown from scratch, from small to large, from weak to strong, and now enjoys a certain international reputation, which is indeed not easy, no matter in terms of scale or level.”
“It is an opportunity and even a challenge to include the Tournament of the Lake in the professional series.” Qiu Jijin said that compared with other events of the same level, the Tournament of the Lake still has some details to be completed.
Due to the conflict between the time of the 22nd Lake Tour and the Tour de France, the World Tour team was not invited to participate.
“Overall, all aspects are good and ideal. Many stages meet the difficulty that international competitions should have. In the future, try to move the Tour of the Lake as far back as possible so that it does not conflict with the time of the Tour de France. Attract more strong teams from all over the world to participate.” Qiu Fund expects that there will be more strong teams next year to increase the popularity of the event. (over)