First U.S. Pro Bicycle Championships Scheduled in Philadelphia on June 23
PHILADELPHIA — The United States’ first professional bicycling championship will make its debut here June 23, when a field of world-class riders will be expected for a 156-mile race with a $100,000 purse.
The prize money for the CoreStates United States Professional Cycling Road Championship is the largest purse offered for any one-day bicyle race in the world, according to a fact-sheet on the event.
About 100 professional racers, including some top European pros, are expected for the race, which has been sanctioned by the U. S. Professional Racing Organization, according to Thomas H. Bamford, senior vice president of sponsor CoreStates Financial Corp.
“This really is going to be a historic event for Philadelphia,†said Bamford.
Cyclists will race 10 laps around a 14.4-mile circuit stretching along Kelly Drive beside the Schuylkill River, through the city’s Manayunk section, with two partial loops into the Fairmount Park Mansion area and finishes at the Benjamin Franklin Parkway.
The highest-placed American finisher will be awarded the title United States Professional National Champion for 1985. The championship will also be used to select the members of the official American professional team to be entered in the World Championships in Italy.
CoreStates’ major subsidiary is Philadelphia National Bank, one of the oldest banks in Pennsylvania.
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