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AusCycling has named a strong 20-rider squad for the event including rising stars Luke Plapp, soon to be an INEOS Grenadier and Carter Turnbull (Trinity Racing) who will compete in the Under-23 time trial.
The races will be an important part of the Australian team's preparation for the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Great Britain as well as the 2022 UCI Road Cycling World Championships which will take place on home soil in Wollongong.
Joining Matthews and Ewan in the men’s squad is Miles Scotson (Groupama-FDJ), Harry Sweeny (Lotto Soudal), Luke Durbridge, Nicholas Schultz, Robert Stannard (all Team BikeExchange) and Nathan Haas (Cofidis).
In the Women’s team, Hosking, Cromwell and Spratt will line up alongside Sarah Roy, Jess Allen (both Team BikeExchange), Lauretta Hanson (Trek-Segafredo) and Brodie Chapman (FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine Futuroscope).
The Elite Men’s road race will take place on a 268-kilometre route that departs from Antwerp and includes multiple passes of several tricky circuits around the town of Leuven with more than 40 climbs and 2,562 metres of climbing.
The Elite Women’s road race will also leave from Antwerp with the peloton taking on on a 160.9-kilometre course to the town of Leuven.
The time trial will take place between the Knokke-Heist and Bruges.
“The World Championship course in the Flanders region of Belgium will provide for a challenging and exciting race," said Rory Sutherland, Australian Cycling Team’s Elite Road Coordinator.
"The 2021 Australian team is a unique combination of experienced veterans and debutant athletes from the rising generation, and we feel confident this combination will lead to a positive outcome.
"We are excited our talented U23 riders will now have the opportunity to compete on the world stage after a year's pause due to COVID-19. It's incredibly important to the future of AusCycling and the development of our next crop of Australian riders."
