Ningbo Cyclist Appointed as Director of Cycling MTB Technical Operations at 19th Asian Games
Wu Xiaojun
"I planned to register at the Hangzhou division for competitive cycling in March. But due to the COVID-19 epidemic, my registration was postponed and I arrived at Qiandaohu Town, Chun'an County and officially registered on April 23." Wu Xiaojun, secretary general of Ningbo Cycling Association, shared with Ningbo Evening News. As a member of the cycling venue team, Wu will work as technical operation director of mountain bike (MTB) competitions at the 19th Asian Games and 4th Asian Paralympic Games in Hangzhou for the following months.
Wu is a national referee of mountain bike competitions with nearly 30 years' outdoor cycling; furthermore, he has rich experience in organizing national and provincial competitions. In 2000, Wu and his friends completed a 21-day cycling journey from Ningbo to Beijing to show their support for China's bid to host the 2008 Olympic Games. In addition, he is one of Ningbo’s pioneer cyclists across the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. His cycling has also taken him throughout Qinghai Province and on trips with fellow Ningbo cyclists on the Sichuan-Tibet Highway.
This middle-age cyclist bantered, "In the early days of my cycling, I was a passionate young fan. Right now, I'm getting 'older' but still very passionate." Nowadays, fewer citizens choose cycling as their preferred means of transportation, while Wu insists on practicing this environmentally-friendly, low-carbon activity.
Ningbo Cycling Association was established in 2003, and Wu served as its secretary general. He and his colleagues have contributed to competition organization, mountain bike track construction and competition software designing.
To name a few, the association has jointly organized Ningbo's Cherry Blossom Festival Cycling Competition with the local government of Zhangshui Town for ten years. Among other hosted events, there are the China Mountain Bike Championship (Ningbo Division) in 2013, China Mountain Bike Championship in 2018 and China Mountain Bike Tournament in 2019. These events were all held at Dapeng Mountain in Ningbo and were the highest-level mountain bike competitions hosted in Zhejiang Province.
Notably, routes of all the above-mentioned competitions are designed by Wu and his colleagues. The Ningbo Mountain Bike Park established in 2020 also is another product of their design and technical support.
Wu revealed to Ningbo Evening News that another cycling enthusiast, Le Junjie, was also invited to take office as technical officer in mountain bike race at the games. "Le Junjie is a national first-class referee, and he will serve as the director of equipment this time. It’s our pleasure and honor to contribute to the Asian Games. We'll fulfill our duty to guarantee the smooth running of events." Wu said.