The UCI introduced on Wednesday that almost all of members of the Professional Cycling Council (PCC) accredited the addition of yet one more group to the Grand Tours, permitting for 23 groups to be invited to the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a España.
The UCI Management Committee should now cross the measure and can vote on March 31 on whether or not to approve the request.
Tucked away within the press launch was a observe that the PCC additionally supported a proposal to check gear ratio restrictions “throughout a race later within the season”, pending UCI Management Committee approval.
The Giro d’Italia organisers are anticipated to announce their wildcard invites in January however haven’t executed in order they await the newest choice by the UCI on the addition of yet one more wildcard slot.
Grand Tours have had 22 groups most years aside from 2021, when the UCI accredited an extra wildcard to assist ProTeams recuperate from the COVID-19 pandemic that severely lower the 2020 street calendar.
If accredited, since Lotto have opted to forgo the race, the Giro organisers may invite 4 wildcard groups. Tudor Pro Cycling, Q36.5 and Uno-X Mobility are the highest contenders together with Polti-VisitMalta and VF Group-Bardiani CSF-Faizanè.
For the Tour de France, there could be solely three out there invites, placing Team TotalEnergies up towards Tudor, Q36.5 and Uno-X Mobility as Israel-Premier Tech and Lotto earned computerized invitations as the highest two ProTeams of 2024.
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The Vuelta a España organisers must determine between these groups and Spanish ProTeams Kern Pharma, Euskaltel-Euskadi, Burgos BH-Burpellet and Caja Rural-Seguros RGC for his or her wildcard positions.
Gear restriction take a look at strikes ahead
The UCI press launch on the gear restriction take a look at adopted a dialogue earlier this month by the SafeR Supervisory Board.
Wout van Aert referred to as for gear restrictions in January as a method to scale back the ever-increasing speeds in professional biking, and the concept gained help from different riders like Chris Froome.
Others doubted it might make a distinction, with aerodynamics skilled Dan Bigham stating on Instagram, “Speed is not decided by gear ratios. It’s decided by enter energy divided by drag. Limiting gear ratios will not assist if you wish to gradual races down.”
Taco van der Hoorn (Intermarché-Wanty) expressed his opposition to gear restrictions to Cyclingnews, saying he prefers a decrease cadence and greater gears and the foundations would penalise riders like him.
One Cycling
The UCI additionally said they’re engaged on renewing the registration of WorldTour and Women’s WorldTour races for 2026-2028, revealing on the identical time that the One Cycling venture submitted new occasions.
One Cycling is the topic of “ongoing discussions”, the press launch famous in a difficult-to-decipher sentence: “As a part of the registration functions obtained, the PCC took observe of bids for brand spanking new occasions throughout the One Cycling venture in respect of which the households expressed their want for the continuation of the continuing discussions however with their formal participation and below the authority of the UCI to ascertain the UCI International Calendar, outline its totally different tiers and allocate occasions.”
UCI President David Lappartient informed Cyclingnews on the Tour Down Under that any discussions relating to the One Cycling venture needs to be “below the umbrella of the UCI”.
“The crimson line is that we don’t need to have a breakaway league, we do not need to have a personal league, and we need to guarantee that we respect races just like the Tour Down Under which might be right here for years,” Lappartient mentioned.
The UCI mentioned that the PCC agreed.
“The members of the PCC underlined that the official consultant organisations (AIGCP, AIOCC and CPA) should be concerned within the decision-making course of associated to the UCI WorldTour and UCI Women’s WorldTour and that they should be adequately consulted in relation to the One Cycling venture, given its implications for all stakeholders and for the calendar as an entire,” the press launch said.
Other bulletins embody a rise in begin charges and housing for ladies’s groups for the 2026-2028 WorldTour cycle.