Apeldoorn – The Union Européenne de Cyclisme (UEC) has selected Apeldoorn as the host city for the 2028 European Track Cycling Championships. The championships were initially awarded to Zolder (Belgium). To give the European Championships a prominent place within the Dutch Cycling Festival 2028, all parties involved worked together to facilitate the move to Apeldoorn, which most recently hosted a sold-out edition in 2024. The awarding of the event recognises the shared ambition and organisational strength of the Royal Dutch Cycling Union (KNWU), the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport (VWS), the Province of Gelderland, the Municipality of Apeldoorn and LPC, who will once again work closely together over the coming years to deliver a European championship at the highest level.
In 2028, the European Track Cycling Championships will form an important part of the Dutch Cycling Festival, a year-long celebration of cycling marking the KNWU’s 100th anniversary. In the Olympic year of 2028, the festival will place the Netherlands at the heart of both national and international cycling, while also creating lasting social impact. Under the motto “Let’s celebrate cycling”, the whole of 2028 will be dedicated to bicycles and cycling. The Province of Gelderland will contribute through a range of elite sporting events and community programmes, underlining its ambition to encourage even more people, particularly children and young people, to get on their bikes and become more active.
The European Championships will be one of the absolute highlights of the festival, bringing Europe’s best track cyclists together in Apeldoorn. A broad community programme will also be developed around the championships, connecting the city and the wider region. Through activities for young and old, schools, sports clubs and other community partners, the event will become much more than an elite sporting competition and demonstrate how cycling can inspire people to get active.
An important step towards Los Angeles 2028
For TeamNL, hosting the European Championships on home soil will have special significance. Taking place just a few months before the Los Angeles Olympic Games, the event will provide a unique opportunity for the Dutch riders to prepare at the highest level in their own country, compete against Europe’s best and perform in front of their home fans.
Andreas Roodbeen, interim Managing Director of the KNWU:
“We are proud to be bringing the European Track Cycling Championships back to Apeldoorn in 2028 together with our partners. In the year in which the KNWU celebrates its 100th anniversary, we will welcome Europe’s best riders to the Netherlands, while the championships will also provide an important benchmark for our athletes on the road to the Olympic Games. Through the Dutch Cycling Festival, we also want to use elite sport to inspire people to embrace cycling. To come and watch, but above all to get on a bike themselves. This will make 2028 a special year in which we celebrate our anniversary while also looking ahead to the future of cycling.”
A stage for new cycling history
Marco Wenzkowski, Alderman for Elite Sport at the Municipality of Apeldoorn:
“I am incredibly proud that Apeldoorn will once again welcome an event of this calibre. In recent years, we have shown that major international sporting events belong here. Omnisport Apeldoorn provides a unique stage where the world’s best athletes come together and new sporting history is made. The return of the European Track Cycling Championships to Apeldoorn in 2028 confirms our position as a leading city for elite sport. I am very much looking forward to once again welcoming Europe’s best riders and cycling fans from the Netherlands and abroad to the green and spacious capital of the Veluwe.”
