To mark the year that indoor cycling and virtual racing became an integral part of cycling, the UCI has sanctioned an official World Championships.

The UCI Zwift Cycling Esports World Championships, in partnership with Zwift as the official virtual platform, is scheduled for December 9, when the northern hemisphere winter arrives.

There will be elite categories for men and women, running the same Zwift Watopia Figure 8 reverse course; for those familiar with Zwift's Watopia Challenge, the World Championships will finish on the KOM Forward climb.

As for the race course, the World Championships will be 50km and 483m in elevation.

The UCI will announce the new rainbow jersey design and start sheet in the coming weeks.

With the advent of the best turbo trainers, better indoor cycling apps, and better power meter integration, the indoor cycling field has exploded in popularity.

All elite level riders participating in this event will use the same Garmin-Tax NEO 2T Smart Turbo trainer to ensure standardization. Shimano is the drivetrain partner for this event and Science in Sports is the nutrition affiliate.

"There is no doubt that we will make history in December," said Eric Min, CEO of Zwift."

"This will be the first esports world championship officially sanctioned by a sports governing body and embodies all the values of traditional sports.

Toyota South Africa has been named the non-cycling affiliate event sponsor. Andrew Kirby, CEO of the company's South African operations, is a finisher of the grueling mountain bike race Cape Epic.