More races could be axed as pro cycling walks tightrope

Former UCI president Brian Cookson optimistic but warns fans to expect further disruption, reports Vern Pitt

- Vern Pitt

Further race cancellations seem inevitable, former UCI president Brain Cookson has said, after the first races to be scrapped from the revised WorldTour calendar were announced last week.

The tightrope the sport is walking as it tries to navigate its way through the coronavirus pandemic became starkly apparent as the Canadian Grand Prix Québec and Grand Prix Montréal were both cut amid coronavirus concerns.

President of both races, Serge Arsenault, said his organisation had tried to reconcile racing with an appropriate level of safety but it had proved impossible. He said: “Too many uncertainties remain, such as the opening of borders, compulsory quarantine, authorisation to hold gatherings and so on. It would not have been responsible or respectful towards all those who have trusted us since 2010 to postpone this decision further.”

That announcement came just days after top Women’s WorldTour team CCC-Liv was one of three squads that withdrew from two one-day races in the Navarre region of Spain. Manager Eric van den Boom said: “We have set ourselves a very strict health protocol in recent months. All this to minimise the risks of contamination with Covid-19. We were delighted to finally be able to race again. However, on Wednesday, it turned out that the health risks in the Navarre region were too great.”

“Hopes are coming up against cold, hard reality”