World News – UA – Tour Down Under 2021 canceled due to coronavirus concerns – Cycling Weekly

The Australian stage race was to be the first race of the 2021 season, and with the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race also known as Disabled, WorldTour races will not resume until February at the earliest

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« Despite all efforts, it is with regret that we announce that the Santos Tour Down Under will not take place in 2021 However, cycling will still be present in the streets of Adelaide and the region of Australia -Méridionale, with a smaller national cycling festival which will take place in January 2021 ”, indicates the press release from the race organizers

Australia recovering from second peak of coronavirus in August, number of cases now remains low Inviting hundreds of runners and teams from around the world as Europe now enters its second wave meant that ‘it was always difficult to keep the race going with the WorldTour teams present

<p overcome, "said organizer Hitaf Rasheed

Retired Australian professional driver Stuart O’Grady was ready for his first year as race director and said he was « devastated » to have to postpone the race

“Of course I am disappointed, but given the challenges our priority must be the health and safety of South Australians, our communities and the international cycling fraternity,” said the 2007 winner from Paris- Roubaix “I believe that for a year we can put aside hosting an international event and make South Australia’s heart beat faster by delivering a new redesigned event for cyclists and communities across the country. »

The Tour Down Under will therefore take place in 2022 as the opening of the WorldTour season.For 2021, the season is now scheduled to start on February 21 at the UAE Tour, which was the scene of the first coronavirus outbreak in the peloton earlier this year

The canceled Australian races will be good news for the pros, who will now have a longer off-season. With Vuelta a España ending on November 9, there were only 71 days left between the end of the Grand Tour of Spain and the start of the Tour Down Under

From now on, riders will have at least 104 days off if they participate in both the Vuelta and the UAE Tour

Santos Tour Down Under, 2021, Cadel Evans, Coronavirus, Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race, UCI World Tour