🎥 Organisers and riders at a point of no return?
More and more stages and races are being cancelled. Adverse weather and disagreements are fuelling tensions that ultimately reach the fans.
It’s no coincidence that the very first edition of this newsletter, nearly three months ago, focused on the incidents at Étoile de Bessèges and the Challenge of Mallorca. Two very different situations, but with a clear common thread: disagreements between riders and organisers, dangerous conditions and cancelled races.
Since those early-season incidents, we’ve seen similar scenes again: in Turkey, Paris-Nice or the Volta a Catalunya, to name just a few. For some years now, isolated cases have been popping up like mushrooms and I believe something is changing.
I don’t know the exact reason and I don’t want to impose my own biases. I’m not sure how much is down to the rise of ‘stars’, in the purest sense of sports leaders, or the potential emergence of disruptive Super Leagues like One Cycling. Perhaps it’s the increasing influence and control of the CPA… or maybe it’s just pure coincidence.
To get some clarity, or at least try, I asked a few sports directors at Itzulia for their take on the matter. Is this a trend in modern cycling? Are the riders too sensitive? Or are they simply more united, more aware? It feels like a worthwhile exercise, just like our earlier discussion on wildcard invitations for the grand tours.
Looking forward to reading your thoughts in the comments!
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Interesting to see the interviews, thanks. Nice use of video content along with your writing.