No longer a rumour and not an April Fool's antic, the CIC-Mont Ventoux has been cancelled for 2025. The men's UCI ProSeries race was scheduled for June 17 for a sixth edition.
It is the second consecutive year the French one-day race has been removed from the calendar, the French news outlet, La Provence, posting the news on Monday. Last year, the event did not take place due to a date conflict with the Olympic Games torch relay in June, in advance of the quadrennial event in Paris that began on July 26.
In January, race director Nicolas Garcera told several news outlets that the race had lost full revenue from two sponsors, partial revenue from a third company and needed additional resources to cover the costs to broadcast the event.
During the winter months with snow and ice covering the 'giant of Provence', organisers also expressed concern again about the loss of several sponsors and securing support for an amateur ride on the same course.
"While the budget had been finalized for several months, and the teams' roster had already been validated, the unstable and difficult economic context is catching up with us," Garcera told Total Velo. "In all transparency, these new developments mean that we are currently short €50,000 to produce and televise the race. That's nothing, and it's huge at the same time."
A revision to the 154km route had been planned for the journey from Vaison-La-Romaine and the summit of Mont Ventoux, with six WorldTour teams confirmed to compete. The two locations are only 31 kilometres apart on the most direct route, with riders having to negotiate six categorised climbs, including the ascent of Mont Ventoux twice, once from each side.
"The biggest problem is the lack of respect for others, cycling has no stadium and is 'disturbing' on public roads," organisers posted to social media in February.
Organisers were looking to include a challenge ride for amateurs, to finish just before the pros on the same day and on the same course. The plan had been for free entry for amateurs, fees covered by a sponsor with naming rights.
The CIC-Mont Ventoux took place in 2019 as the Mont Ventoux Dénivelé Challenge, and Spanish racer Jesús Herrada won the inaugural edition. The next three races were won by Aleksandr Vlasov, Miguel Ángel López and Ruben Guerreiro. The fifth and final edition, so far, was the first pro victory for Lenny Martinez (Groupama-FDJ), who won on a 98.3km route shortened due to weather conditions.
The summit finish to Mont Ventoux will return to the Tour de France this summer, featured on stage 16 to open the final week of racing. Garcera told La Provence that he hoped to organize the Mont Ventoux one-day race again in 2026.
