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Cyclocross returns to Fayetteville’s Centennial Park with the 2025 USA Cycling National Championships.

Story and Photography By Kai Caddy

Fayetteville’s Centennial Park, constructed in large part to host the 2022 UCI Cyclocross World Championships, hasn’t hosted a cyclocross race since October 2022. That will all change in December when USA Cycling brings its Cyclocross National Championships to the park.

Nationals will bring five days of jam-packed racing Dec. 10-14. Fans, who will have free admission, will be treated to several races a day, concluding with the Elite Men’s and Women’s races on Sunday, Dec. 14.

“It’s a true honor for Fayetteville to once again welcome the nation’s best riders,” said Ryan Hauck, executive director for Experience Fayetteville. “We take great pride in creating a world-class experience, not just for the athletes, but for the fans, families and volunteers who make this event possible. Fayetteville’s cycling story is one built on years of investment, collaboration and community spirit.”

The park’s history with cyclocross goes back to 2019, before it was even a park. The nation’s elite cyclocross racers got their first taste of Fayetteville that Oct, 5-6 at Fayettecross. The event was held in what was then just an open field — no infrastructure, no paved parking lots, just a big patch of grass. A driving rain on Oct. 6 turned the course into a sloppy mess — ideal cyclocross conditions, honestly. It was a touch less ideal for several drivers whose cars were mired in deep mud by the end of the day.

That race was slated to be the first of a steady annual run-up to the World Championships in 2022, but the Covid-19 pandemic led to a hiatus on racing at Centennial.

In that time, though, the park was completed, and in October 2021, the first UCI World Cup was held at the park on a Wednesday. Rain once again left the course a mud-fest (but, the surrounding infrastructure fared much better). The race served as the world’s first look at what would be the course for the World Championships in January 2022.

With the shadow of Covid still looming, a handful of the world’s favorites opted not to travel to Fayetteville for those 2022 World Championships. In the end, nearly 200 of the world’s best athletes and more than 10,000 fans descended on the park. They were treated to unseasonably warm and dry weather. The conditions led to blazing fast races, not the typical slog that cyclocross fans love.

“It’s a true honor for Fayetteville to welcome the nation’s best riders while giving fans, families, and volunteers a world-class experience.”

One more UCI World Cup was held at Centennial in October 2022. Since then, the rise of gravel racing, especially in the U.S. and Northwest Arkansas has largely pushed aside any momentum cyclocross gained after Worlds.

Cyclocross is a fan-friendly discipline raced on a relatively short course for multiple laps. Road cyclists developed the sport as a way to cross-train in the winter. It combines aspects of road and mountain biking with obstacles thrown in. Centennial Park famously features a section with 38 stairs, where riders have to dismount and run up.

Racers at Nationals will compete for the coveted stars and stripes jerseys. Champions earn the right to wear the championship jersey for the full year until the next national champion is crowned.

Highlights of the racing schedule include the collegiate races on the afternoon of Dec. 11, team relays and singlespeed races on Dec. 12, the under-23 races to close the day Dec. 13 and the elite races to close the event Dec. 14.

This will be the first USA Cycling National Championship event in Arkansas since the 2024 Collegiate Mountain Bike Championships were held in Bentonville after being postponed and eventually moved because of the effects of Hurricane Helene in North Carolina.

It will be the first time Cyclocross Nationals have taken place in Arkansas.

Andrew Strohmeyer, last year’s elite men’s champion, will be a favorite to repeat as he’s having another strong season. Eric Brunner will be in contention as well after finishing second last season.

Last year’s women’s winner, Vida Lopez de San Roman, just wrapped her first full season on the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup circuit where she won three races and finished second in the overall standings. It will be interesting to see how that success transfers into a shorter cyclocross season. Katie Clouse, who won silver in 2024, has retired. Bronze medalist and cyclocross veteran Raylyn Nuss should be in contention again for a podium spot. Youngsters Lauren Zoerner and Mia Aseltine will also push for the elite title and are also favorites for the under-23 title.

Fans can also expect a full expo area with food trucks, vendors and coffee. There will also be a mini-course setup for kids to try their hands at some cross action.