The head of the Qatar Cycling Federation has said that there will not be a circuit or climb built in for the 2016 World Championships there.
Federation president Sheikh Khalid Bin Ali Al Thani said that the committee did consider building one but they simply ran out of time to build it for the races.
"It was suggested, it was something that was done in Moscow before [for the 1980 Olympics], but unfortunately we don't have the time to do it," Al Thani said. "It's very complicated here because Doha and Qatar are developing very quickly with a lot of infrastructure going around. It would have been difficult to change all the planning. I don't think it would be feasible to do it."
The Corniche in Doha, which hosts the final stage of the men and women’s Tours of Qatar, will be the start finish line for the championships. Al Thani admitted that they have already begun to piece together what the course will be.
"We already have route planned as it exists now in Qatar, but Qatar is a very fast-developing country and you have new roads every day, and I think it will change over time," he said.
Unlike the 2022 World Cup, there will be no need to even consider moving the date of the event as it is usually in September or October.
"It's up to the UCI but we're getting the impression that it will be in early October. It will be the better time for us, I think," Al Thani said. "The world championships are normally in September but we're trying to make it as late as possible because here the weather is a little bit harsh, at least in early September. It's not too bad, but the later we have it, the better it will be."
Al Thani also answered the question on whether or not there would be local participants:
"With the men, we are sure we are going to be there. The girls are just starting and we hope they will continue with us. They have a goal in front of them, so we hope to see them participate in the world championships," Al Thani said. "We have been through this before. When we first started cycling in Qatar in 2001, in preparation for the 2006 Asian Games and we had a [men's] team in time for that. We had a plan and we made it."
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