Lizzy Gunsalus continues four-race winning streak at Major Taylor Cross Cup while 18-year-old Tofik Beshir of Ethiopia wins first UCI-level race at elite level
Pan-Am Cyclocross Championships hits bumpy road with US government shutdown, Unbound Gravel lottery opens Saturday - North American Roundup
Lizzy Gunsalus (Marian University) extended her cyclocross winning streak to four consecutive UCI races with double wins at Major Taylor Cross Cup this past weekend on her team's home turf in Indianapolis, Indiana. Tofik Beshir (CXD) earned two podiums in the men's events, including his first UCI victory at the elite level.
At just 18 years of age and a native of Ethiopia, Beshir has been a resident in the US for the past decade, but only added cyclocross to his racing calendar three seasons ago. On the road, he raced for Kelly Benefit Strategies but has matured in cyclocross, taking a spot on the podium eight times last season as a junior. Competing in all eight elite men's races of the US Cyclocross Series this season, he finished sixth overall and was the youngest rider in the elite men's top 10.
On the opening day at Major Taylor Cross Cup, Beshir finished second to Brody McDonald. On Sunday, Beshir moved to the top step of the podium with a sprint finish that left Briton Tom Scott in second place and McDonald in third.
Gunsalus outdueled veteran Caroline Mani (Velo Mafia) both days on the Indy Cycloplex course. The 22-year-old came into the Indianapolis weekend with a pair of wins from Kings CX in Ohio, including a victory in her season debut in the C1 contest.
"I’ve been attending Marian University for the past 5 years and to finally win the home UCI race on campus in Marian colors is such an incredible honor," Gunsalus said in a post on Instagram.
Gunsalus won the U23 women's title at the US Cyclocross Championships two years ago and last year as a 21-year-old was fifth in the elite women's contest. A native of Massachusetts, who races on the road for CCB p/b Levine Law Group, Gunsalus goes back to her New England roots next to race Northampton Cyclocross on November 1-2, the event celebrating a 34th edition.
Unbound Gravel lottery opens November 1
Want to race Unbound Gravel in 2026? The lottery process opens this Saturday, November 1, for all of the five distances - XL, 200, 100, 50, or 25 miles - beginning at 12:00 CDT. Entries close on November 15 at 11:59 CST. Lottery winners in the random selection process, managed by event owners Life Time, will be notified by email on November 21.
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2026 marks the 20th anniversary of Unbound Gravel, with the start of the 350-mile XL event scheduled for 3:00 local time on May 30, and the four other distances sending riders on the course between 5:50 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. May 31. All events begin on Commercial Street in downtown Emporia, Kansas.
There are several other ways to gain entry into Unbound Gravel, including raising money for Life Time Foundation or Chris Klug Foundation in a Ride for Charity programme, taking part in an official four-day training camp (April 9-12, 2026), or competing at Sea Otter Classic Gravel (April 16-17, 2026), which will provide 50 'coins' for qualification into Unbound. Other qualification events and volunteer opportunities provide entries for Unbound in 2027.
Pan-Am Cyclocross Championships remain at originally-planned venue in Washington DC
The ongoing US government shutdown this fall created a scare for organisers of the upcoming cyclocross races to be held November 8-9 at the Armed Forces Retirement Home in Washington, DC. Organisers of the 2025 UCI Pan-American Cyclocross Championships and UCI Category 2 DCCX events confirmed just days ago that an agreement was reached for the weekend of races to proceed as planned.
"The Armed Forces Retirement Home, where the race takes place, is on U.S. Federal Government property and is subject to the ongoing government shutdown. This meant our primary contacts for the race venue were no longer allowed to work, leaving us unsure whether the race could take place on the premises," owner of CXHAIRS Media Bill Schieken - which operates both events alongside CXD Trek Bikes and DCMTB - said in a formal announcement on Saturday.
"Thankfully, last week, after meeting with the remaining administrators at the venue, we reached an agreement for PanAms and DCCX to proceed as planned."
Schieken explained that because federal government representatives could not be reached for several weeks, his team went through a permitting process for two new locations. With three weeks to go, the original location at the Armed Forces Retirement Home was reconfirmed. The DCCX event had first been held at that venue in 2008.
The PanAms for cyclocross make their debut in Washington, DC, this year on a two-year contract. New for 2025 will be the hosting of a UCI Team Relay Continental Championship event, a recent addition to the Continental programme but first launched at the UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships in 2023.
Registration for events remains open through November 5.
Jackie has been involved in professional sports for more than 30 years in news reporting, sports marketing and public relations. She founded Peloton Sports in 1998, a sports marketing and public relations agency, which managed projects for Tour de Georgia, Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah and USA Cycling. She also founded Bike Alpharetta Inc, a Georgia non-profit to promote safe cycling. She is proud to have worked in professional baseball for six years - from selling advertising to pulling the tarp for several minor league teams. On the bike, she has climbed l'Alpe d'Huez three times (not fast), and spends time on gravel around horse farms in north Georgia.
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