Harbin Park to Pay Women According to “Gould Formula”
Details are starting to emerge on the Cincinnati International Cyclocross Festival scheduled for October 10-12. Part of the Zipp OVCX Tour, the Festival consists of three UCI-sanctioned races in the greater Cincinnati, Ohio area: the Darkhorse Cyclo-Stampede, the Java Johnny’s Lionhearts International and the newly-upgraded UCI-C1 Bio Wheels – United Dairy Farmers Harbin Park International. According to organizers, it is one of only two 3-day cyclocross festivals of its kind in the world, with the other being Belgium’s legendary Christmas Week.
The Elite Women will have a lucrative day on the final day of the Festival. Promoter Mitch Graham has announced that the Bio Wheels – United Dairy Farmers Harbin Park International will be one of the first races in the world to pay Elite Women according to the formula proposed to the industry last year by elite U.S. mountain bike and cyclocross racer Georgia Gould. According to the “Gould Formula”, the top five Elite Women are paid equally as the top five Elite Men, with positions six through the end paid according to the standard UCI rulebook. The result is equal pay for equal work, a staggering 248% increase in the Women’s purse and one of the richest Women’s cyclocross races in the world. Altogether, Elite racers will be competing for over $15,000 in cash prizes, and over $8,000 has already been posted for Sunday’s Bio Wheels – United Dairy Farmers Harbin Park International alone.
Each day of the Festival will be a complete program as all of the Zipp OVCX Tour classes will compete at every race, highlighted each day by the UCI Elite International Men and Women (unlike some multi-day cyclocross events where each class only competes once over the course of the weekend). Updated information on the Cincinnati International Cyclocross Festival as it happens can be found at http://cincinnatiuci3.blogspot.com/.
