The crowds have been sparse so far at the UCI World Road Cycling Championship in Doha and some of the cyclists are clearly disheartened by it.

Tony Martin admitted his frustration about the poor turnout of spectators at the world road cycling championships in Doha.

After winning the first time trial, Martin said he would wait until he returns home to Germany to properly celebrate his achievements because so few fans had turned out to watch.

"About the crowd, it would sure be nice to have some more fans here to celebrate with. The real celebrations will be when I get home," he told reporters.

Low spectator numbers will only add to the criticism for organizing the championships in Doha, where the temperatures are still close to 40ºC.

Dutchman Tom Dumoulin was not impressed by the number of fans at the championships.

"I just saw a sign 'spectator entrance' which I found quite hilarious actually," Dumoulin told Dutch news group NOS after training. "There are simply no fans. That's weird. It's a bleak World Championships."

The championships will close tomorrow with the Men's Elite Road Race, which runs from 10:30am to 4:35pm.

Are you planning to attend?

Sources: Cycling Weekly |Photo by Ray Toh