The Mud Academy

Every year, you see new young American talent popping-up in cyclocross. This is not a coincidence, but a result of hard work by many people on the American cyclocross scene. The EuroCrossAcademy (ECA) is one of the most beautiful projects in the sport right now. Thanks to this iniative, every year, a delegation of American teenagers can explore cyclocross in Europe on the highest level. It's time to discover more about this project and talk to the people who make it possible.

The ECA is an independent program led by Geoff Proctor, that works closely together with USA Cycling. This project involves also key staff and even, older athletes who also take up a role as mentor during the European Winter campaign. The trip to Europe has a lot of challenges in terms of logisitics, financials, networking,... so it involves a lot of cooperation by many different actors on the US scene to make it happen. Almost every rider in the 27-athlete American delegation for the upcoming Worlds in Tabor has been part of the ECA in the past, proving it's long term impact.

Once arrived in Europe, the young Yankees have to adjust to their new area. The new courses involve often more mud, sand or even snow then what they are used to at their domestic races. They have to learn quickly while they are competing against the best riders in the World.

Logistically, the project also has some challenges for the riders & staff. The academy offers race blocks in October/November, December and January. Last November, riders, staff and all of their equipment had travel from France to Ireland within a week. This required riders & staff to fly by plane, while four vans and a car had to cross the Sea by ferry. This difficult operation could only have been made possible by careful planning that could make go everything smoothly in the end. The effort was rewarded by strong results for Vida Lopez de San Roman & David Thompson who were able to gain the necessary points to secure front-row call ups for the Worlds.

The ECA does not only focus on junior riders. They also already give opportunities to younger teenagers by organising Summer camps. Last Summer, they conducted 3 seperate Summer camps for approximately 80 athletes between 14 and 18 years old.

Despite a lack of government funding, the cyclocross in North America can go on due to close cooperation between close cooperation between Teams, sponsors, race organizers, clubs, the industry, and families. An Olympic status would give even more possibilities argues Geoff Proctor. He's a proponent for cyclocross as an Olympic sport. It would not only bring more prestige but also government funding to the sport, what would be a big step forward for the sport. He argues that there are 26 nations taking part in Tabor and that an Olympic status could be start of a new phase of global development.

The ultimate goal is to prepare young, aspiring student-athletes for top European cyclocross racingand to help them grow, develop, and become purpose-driven members of the world community. Results alone are not the only thing that matters for the ECA. They encourage to also focus on aspiration, not only on expectation, for this Worlds and far beyond that.