BERKELEY, Calif. - The National Interscholastic Cycling Association (NICA), the nation's leading interscholastic cycling organization, is pleased to announce that six new leagues will host events and races in 2021. Kansas, Kentucky, Nebraska, and Ohio make up the four most recent leagues to join our network of interscholastic cycling leagues with Kansas launching this spring and the others beginning their events this fall. Missouri and South Carolina were scheduled to begin hosting weekend events and races last year but were unable to due to the pandemic and are now on schedule to launch this fall as well.
"The pandemic may have sidetracked us, but we were working hard behind the scenes. League Directors, coaches, and National staff faced new obstacles and solved problems collectively, we grew as an organization. The pandemic reinforced the value NICA brings to its student-athletes, coaches and volunteers. All across the nation our participation grew by double digit increases," shares Steve Matous, President of NICA. "I am so proud of how we responded, proving we are stronger together and providing the critical outdoor activities we all need to reduce stress and keep our community spirit strong."
Earlier this month, Kansas hosted its first two race weekends. Tina Khan, Kansas League Director shares, "It has been several years in the making and our inaugural season launch was a bigger success than I ever could have imagined. Our coaches, student-athletes, and families are uniting around bikes and single track in Kansas!"
The Ohio League will host its first races this fall. Ohio League Director Jen Malik shares, "The stoke boat is all fueled up and ready to go! With only a few months before our first NICA event weekend, we are full send to help prep our coaches and teams for a successful launch. The support from the community and positivity surrounding NICA in Ohio is unreal and unmatched. We already have some amazing teams all over the state and over 100 student-athletes signed up! The excitement is building, and we cannot wait to watch as friendships grow across the state."
"We couldn't be more enthusiastic about the future," continues Matous. "The last year proved the sustainability and strength of our programs as we continued to get more kids on bikes. We are working on our next class of new Leagues to bring us closer to our goal of having a NICA presence in all 50 states. We are currently looking at 6 new states with strong signs of having them join us in the near future."
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About the National Interscholastic Cycling Association (NICA)
The National Interscholastic Cycling Association's (NICA) mission is to build strong minds, bodies, character, and communities through cycling. NICA recognizes the value of participation in NICA League events for all student-athletes, free from discrimination based on race, religion, or gender identity. Our core value of inclusivity demonstrates our belief that everyone should be able to participate in our programs and feel welcomed, respected, and supported.
Founded in 2009 as a 501(c)3 nonprofit, NICA develops interscholastic and community-based cycling programs for student-athletes and coaches across the United States. NICA provides leadership services and governance for local leagues to deliver quality mountain bike activities and events. NICA has served almost 64,000 student-athletes since 2009. Currently, NICA has 29 state and regional leagues and 12,000+ registered volunteer coaches who are working annually with over 22,500 student-athletes from 960 high school and middle school teams in the USA.
NICA exists by virtue of generous sponsors, donors, and partners. For more information on NICA visit www.nationalmtb.org, follow @nationalMTB on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn, or call (510) 524-5464.
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