SweetSpot announced Thursday that the Tour Series has partnered with USA CRITS, the leading criterium series in the US. The winners of the men’s and women’s Tour Series will be given the chance to race at the Winston-Salem Cycling International Crit Challenge being held as part of the USA CRITS Finals weekend in North Carolina in September.
In addition, SweetSpot will invite the USA CRITS D1 men’s and women’s teams to compete in the next edition of the Tour Series in May of 2022.
“We are excited about this new partnership that brings some of the best crit teams from around the globe to Winston-Salem and gives our D1 Teams the chance to race internationally,” said Scott Morris, managing director at USA CRITS, in a press release.
Organisers of the Tour Series and USA CRITS are committed to raising the profile of criterium racing globally and to jointly promote each other’s events to their respective audiences.
"We are thrilled to be working with Scott and the team at the USA CRITS and it is a great example of the plans that we have to continually develop the Tour Series," said Jonathan Durling, partnerships director for Tour Series organisers SweetSpot
“We are sure the prospect of being invited to be a part of the USA CRITS Finals weekend is an exciting one for all of our teams that will add to the closely fought nature of the Tour Series.”
USA CRITS Finals weekend is held at the Winston-Salem Cycling Classic in North Carolina, which offers three days of racing between September 24-26. The new International Crit Challenge will feature a two-day format pitting some of the world’s best crit teams against America’s best D1 crit squads, according to the press release.
“This new format once again offers Winston-Salem the chance to be a showcase for international cycling," said Ray Boden, race director of Winston-Salem Cycling.
The Tour Series of criterium races normally held in city centres around Great Britain in May. The event has been postponed to August, however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Further details of the dates and venues for the Tour Series will be announced this spring.
USA CRITS Series will host criteriums across nine cities in the US with events held between June and September.
2021 USA CRITS schedule
| Race | Date | Location | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Saint Francis Tulsa Tough | June 11th | Tulsa, OK |
| 2 | ASWD Twilight Criterium | July 10th | Boise, ID |
| 3 | Salt Lake Criterium - Gateway | July 17th | Salt Lake City, UT |
| 4 | Salt Lake Criterium - Holladay | July 18th | Holladay, UT |
| 5 | Audi Denver Littleton Twilight Criterium | July 31st | Littleton, CO |
| 6 | Birmingham Hammerfest Fueled by BOLT24 | August 14th | Birmingham, AL |
| 7 | Spartanburg Regional Healthcare Criterium | August 20th | Spartanburg, SC |
| 8 | AOC Twilight Criterium | August 21st | Athens, GA |
| 9 | Sun City Crit | September 11th | El Paso, TX |
| 10 | Winston-Salem Cycling Classic - USA CRITS Finals | September 24th | Winston Salem, NC |
| 11 | Winston-Salem Cycling Classic International Crit Challenge | September 25th | Winston Salem, NC |