UCI President makes people sit up and take notice: Will the cycling calendar be revolutionised?

The World Tour calendar will also include 35 races next year. According to a report by the French online platform DirectVelo, this could look different from 2026. The race dates could also be affected. In an interview with the online portal, UCI President David Lappartient talks about possible changes to the cycling calendar and their reasons, as well as the financial situation of the professional teams.

Cycling race calendar: Paris-Roubaix in autumn?

The possible reorganisation of the cycling calendar could include monuments such as Paris-Roubaix or the Tour of Flanders which could then be postponed to October.

UCI President David Lappartient cites the "fantastic" spectator numbers for the Tour of Flanders (2020) and Paris-Roubaix (2021) as justification for such considerations, when these two races were held in October due to the coronavirus pandemic.

"I'm not saying that we absolutely have to do this again, but it's not forbidden. However, these two events should follow each other in order to maintain the logic of the preparation for these specific races. Why not swap the Tour of Lombardy and Liège-Bastogne-Liège? Of course, the whole thing has to make sense," said Lappartient.

New date for Vuelta a Espana?

The Frenchman also proposes organising more races in South America at the beginning of the year. However, he wants to leave the Tour de France untouched. "Shortening the Tour de France, with the influence it has on our sport, would be damaging."

Climate change is also expected to play a role in the reorganisation of the cycling calendar and could ensure that the Vuelta a Espana and the Tour Down Under are given different dates. "There are heatwaves in Australia in January. The Vuelta in mid-August is not easy either. This is a factor that needs to be taken into account when reorganising the calendar," says Lappartient.

To increase the appeal of cycling, Lappartient is also bringing new race formats - similar to the Hammer Series - into play. Races that would represent a new offering due to their brevity or circuit character.

Protecting the environment with a new World Tour calendar?

The reason for the possible changes to the World Tour calendar is also the goal of reducing the carbon emissions of the teams and races by 50 per cent by 2030. A race calendar in which long journeys are largely avoided could bring us closer to this goal. For example, "jumps" from northern to southern Europe should be ruled out in future. "Instead of travelling to a country five or six times a year, we should do this over a longer period of time," said Lappartient, explaining his thoughts and citing the Flemish classics as an example, where part of the cycling sport stays in a small area for a longer period of time.

In all these considerations, the UCI president wants to remain in control, especially after a Reuters report on a possible scenario of a Super League formed by five top teams around Jumbo-Visma and Ineos Grenadiers.

New super league in cycling? UCI President speaks out

"I see it as an extension of the discussions we are having with the teams and the organisers. We are not in the logic of the Football Super League, which wanted to challenge the Champions League," said the president in the interview, adding: "The teams want to be more economically involved and make more profit from their investments. That doesn't seem illogical. There are also elements that we have discussed with them that do not seem to be incompatible with the UCI."

However, Lappartient is concerned about the possible merger of top teams, which would lead to an even greater difference in class. This refers to the Meanwhile failed merger of Jumbo-Visma and Soudal - Quick Step.