Global viewing figures for the International Cycling Union’s (UCI) 2019 Road World Championships rose by 31 per cent from the previous year’s event, according to organiser Welcome to Yorkshire.
The English county played host to the Championships from September 22-29, with the spa town of Harrogate serving as the competition hub. According to Welcome to Yorkshire, a record-breaking 329 million people in 124 countries tuned in to watch the event, up from 250 million for the previous year’s Championships in Innsbruck-Tirol, Austria.
The 2019 Championships were broadcast to 24 more countries than in 2018. In Europe alone, more than 6,500 hours of Championships coverage was beamed to 40 nations. In the UK, every race was shown live by public-service broadcaster the BBC and there was extensive coverage in key cycling tourism markets like Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany. Globally, the total number of broadcast hours increased by 38-per-cent year-on-year, with 7,089 hours covered across the globe.
Chair of Yorkshire 2019, Chris Pilling, said: “These are fantastic figures which far exceed our initial broadcast expectations. We pledged we would showcase Yorkshire to 250 million people across the globe, so to reach 329 million in 124 countries is very satisfying. We delivered an inclusive, innovative and inspiring Championships which I have no doubt will attract new visitors to our beautiful county for many years to come.”