Paris (AFP)
The International Cycling Union (UCI) announced on Wednesday the extension of the suspension of events by one month, until June 1, which results in the postponement of the Critérium du Dauphiné, the preparatory test for the Tour de France, in because of the coronavirus pandemic.
This extension applies to all cycling disciplines and all categories of riders, said the international federation chaired by David Lappartient.
Apart from the Dauphiné, whose departure was scheduled for May 31 in Clermont-Ferrand, the other WorldTour events organized in May had already been removed from the calendar on the scheduled dates: Tour de Romandie, Eschborn Frankfurt and especially Tour d'Italie (Giro), the second of the great national tours.
The decision was taken after a meeting held Wednesday under the aegis of the UCI, with representatives of the organizers, the teams and the riders.
The UCI, which has received more than 450 requests to postpone or cancel tests, added that it would propose a calendar outline in the coming weeks according to the different recovery scenarios.
In addition, a working group composed of representatives of the UCI, the riders (CPA) and their employers (AIGCP) was created in order to "lead to concrete initiatives in terms of riders' contracts and the situation of teams in the current context of pandemic-related inactivity. "
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