The EuroEyes Cyclassics Hamburg WorldTour race will not take place after all in 2020, as the organisers pulled the plug on the event due to coronavirus concerns.
The German one-day race, a prestigious sprinter's classic, was originally scheduled to take place on August 16, but was pushed back to October 3 when the COVID-19 pandemic halted the season.
On Monday, the organisers issued a statement announcing that the 2020 edition - which includes a mass-participation event as well as the WorldTour race - has now been cancelled altogether.
"When we postponed the EuroEyes Cyclassics Hamburg from its original date of August 16 to October 3, 2020, we felt very confident we would still be able to deliver an exceptional event at the later date," read the statement.
"Unfortunately, due to reasons related to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and further conversations with the local authorities at the City of Hamburg, we regret to advise that EuroEyes Cyclassics Hamburg cannot take place in 2020 and will return on August 22, 2021."
The cancellation reduces the WorldTour calendar to 26 events, five of which - Tour Down Under, Great Ocean Road Race, UAE Tour, Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, and Paris-Nice - took place before the season was interrupted.
The Hamburg Classic follows its fellow German WorldTour one-day race Eschborn-Frankfurt in calling the race off. Seven other WorldTour events have decided not to organise a 2021 edition on the rescheduled calendar: E3 BinckBank Classic, Tour de Romandie, Tour de Suisse, Volta Ciclista a Catalunya, Itzulia Basque Country, Clásica San Sebastián, and RideLondon.
Elia Viviani has won the past three editions of the EuroEyes Cyclassics Hamburg. In any case, the Italian would have been riding the opening stage of the Giro d'Italia on October 3, which will also see the final stage of the BinckBank Tour.
The rescheduled season comes to life next week with the Vuelta a Burgos, while the WorldTour returns with Strade Bianche on August 1.
