CYCLING: Ballarat hopes for madison hub

BALLARAT will become the domestic hub of the madison in Australia if plans by the city's cycling community come to fruition.Ballarat Sebastopol Cycling Club is proposing to use next year's Victorian men's and women's madison championships at its refurbished velodrome as the catalyst for a program promoting the form of racing.Club track committee chairman Roger Bade said the madison was largely ignored as a cycling discipline.The Bendigo International Madison is arguably the biggest cycling event in Australia.However, outside this longstanding classic, and national and state titles, madisons are a rarity on the Australian cycling calendar.Bade said one of Australia's most memorable Olympic cycling moments was the gold medal performance of Brett Aitken and Scott McGrory in the madison in Sydney in 2000.Unfortunately, the madison is now no longer an Olympic event.Bade said as it stood, basically only the elite was catered for.He said the club saw an opportunity for it to develop a program from the grassroots up."It's an exciting concept.''The club's plan is to introduce cyclists to the madison at a young age and provide a stepping stone to state and national championships."We're looking to hold regular club and inter-club event to give juniors a chance to hone their skills in a difficult type of racings in a safe environment.''The state championships at Marty Busch Reserve will be contested on Sunday, February 13, as part of a track carnival.The titles will cater for male and females.As well as the championships, the program will also feature an under-17 madison.The one-day carnival will be the first major event on the velodrome, which has been the subject of an upgrade worth $350,000.The carnival will also feature country team sprints, scratch races, handicaps, motor-paced events, elimination and wheelraces.