Pushing boundaries

Sometimes a world-class achievement starts with something very simple: deciding to just give it a go. That certainly applies to the athletes coming to Apeldoorn at the end of October. From Thursday 29 October to Sunday 1 November, Omnisport Apeldoorn will be the venue for the UCI Para Cycling Track World Championships. The world’s best para-cyclists are coming to our city – for the third time already. We have every reason to be incredibly proud of that.

Apeldoorn has now become a fixture on the international cycling calendar. European and world championships are held at Omnisport Apeldoorn, where boundaries are pushed and top performances are achieved.

But for me, this World Championship touches on something that goes beyond sport alone. Para-cycling shows that boundaries aren’t always where we think they are. These athletes push themselves to the absolute limit. At the same time, their disabilities require them to find their own solutions – in training, technique and equipment. How do you ride at full speed when you can’t see the track yourself? That’s where a specially adapted bike makes all the difference – or blind trust in your tandem partner.

For years, they train for that one moment when strength, technique, concentration and perseverance all come together. Their performances are impressive, but the stories behind them are just as remarkable. Stories of trial and error. Of starting afresh. About finding alternative paths when the one you had in mind is no longer a given. That is perhaps the most beautiful aspect of sport. It shows what is possible if you keep trying and brings people together. On the track, in the stands, as a volunteer or simply as a supporter.

That’s what Apeldoorn is all about. A city where everyone can get involved and is given the space to develop their talents. Where grassroots sport and elite sport reinforce one another, and where we encourage one another to get active. That is why I am delighted that, together with the KNWU, Libéma Profcycling and the province of Gelderland, we have brought this World Championships to Apeldoorn. Not just for the races at Omnisport Apeldoorn, but also for everything that can develop around them. For our clubs, volunteers, residents and young people. Because ultimately, elite sport isn’t just about the distance you cover on the track. Sometimes it’s actually about the distance you manage to bridge along the way.

And perhaps one day a young person from Apeldoorn will be sitting in the stands, watching a world champion and thinking: I’d like that too. So this World Cup has set something in motion.

I hope to see you there.