The original dates of the highest profile races on the Women's WorldTour, La Course by le Tour de France (July 19) and Giro d’Italia Internazionale Femminile (June 26-July 5), have officially been cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Organisers of La Course, ASO, have confirmed that they will host the one-day women's race during the rescheduled Tour de France in September but that they have not yet determined a date.
"The Course by le Tour de France by FDJ, scheduled for the 19th July on the Champs-Elysées, will also be postponed to a date which is yet to be determined, but it will take place during the Tour de France 2020."
Due to public health concerns surrounding the coronavirus, all races, including WorldTour-level races have been cancelled or postponed. That has meant the cancellation of Women's WorldTour races Strade Bianche, Bevrijdingsronde van Drenthe, Trofeo Alfredo Binda, Driedaagse Brugge-De Panne, Gent-Wevelgem, Tour of Flanders, the Ardennes Classics, Tour of Chongming Island, and the Women's Tour. The IOC has also postponed the Tokyo Olympic Games until July 2021.
The UCI announced Wednesday that it has now suspended all racing until July 1. For the Women's WorldTour, that means the Giro Rosa is affected, or at least the first five days of the ten-day race that was originally scheduled to take place from June 26 through July 5.
Cyclingnews reached out to the organisers of the Giro Rosa regarding a possible date change to later in the year or an adjustment to the length of the race, but they have not responded before publishing this story.
La Course was originally scheduled to take place on July 19, on the finale stage 21 of the men's Tour de France, on the Champs-Élysées in Paris.
The UCI and ASO have confirmed that the Tour de France will now take place from August 29 through September 20. ASO also confirmed that it was working on a new date for La Course, to be held at the same time as the Tour de France in September, but that it has not determined an exact date yet.
The UCI is providing on its website continuous updates of event cancellations and postponements due to the novel coronavirus. At the same time it is working with race organisers to determine event date changes for those events that are postponed and trying to put together a potential late-season calendar.
In its press statement Wednesday, the UCI said that it is working with organisers; AIOCC, and leaders of ASO, RCS, Unipublic and Flanders Classics; teams (AIGCP) and riders (CPA) to determine a revised calendar. However, priority will be given to the three Grand Tours; Giro d'Italia, Tour de France and Vuelta a España, and the five Monuments; Milan-San Remo, Tour of Flanders, Paris-Roubaix, Liège-Bastogne-Liège, and Il Lombardia.
It will also prioritise the World Championships (September 20-27), European Championships, and move the National Championships to August 22-23.
For the Women's WorldTour, the UCI said that will aim to have a revised version of this year's ready by May 15.
"The UCI, in parallel and in close collaboration with the different parties concerned, continues its work to be able to announce, on 15 May 2020 at the latest, a revised version of the UCI Women’s WorldTour calendar and a new version of the entire UCI International Calendar (men’s and women’s races across all cycling disciplines). This calendar will nevertheless remain dependant on the world health situation," read the UCI press statement.
Only one round of the Women's WorldTour has been contested this year at the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road race in February. There are currently eight races that remain in their original dates on the Women's WorldTour calendar including Postnord Vågårda TTT and Road Race (August 8-9), Ladies Tour of Norway (August 13-16), GP de Plouay (August 22), Boels Ladies Tour (August 25-30), Madrid Challenge by La Vuelta (September 5-6) and Tour of Guangxi (October 20).
2020 Women's WorldTour calendar
- February 1: Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race - Elite Women's Race (Australia)
- March 7: Strade Bianche (Italy) - CANCELLED because of Covid-19
- March 15: Ronde van Drenthe – UCI Women's WorldTour (the Netherlands) - CANCELLED because of Covid-19
- March 22: Trofeo Alfredo Binda – Comune di Cittiglio (Italy) - POSTPONED until June 2 because of Covid-19
- March 26: AG Driedaagse Brugge – De Panne (Belgium) - CANCELLED because of Covid-19
- March 29: Gent – Wevelgem in Flanders Fields (Belgium) - CANCELLED because of Covid-19
- April 5: Ronde van Vlaanderen / Tour des Flandres (Belgium) - CANCELLED because of Covid-19
- April 19: Amstel Gold Race Ladies (the Netherlands) - CANCELLED because of Covid-19
- April 22: La Flèche Wallonne Féminine (Belgium) - CANCELLED because of Covid-19
- April 26: Liège – Bastogne – Liège Femmes (Belgium) - CANCELLED because of Covid-19
- May 7-9: Tour of Chongming Island UCI Women's World Tour (China) - POSTPONED because of Covid-19
- May 14-16: Amgen Tour of California Women's Race empowered with SRAM (United States) - CANCELLED because of lack of funding
- June 8-13: The Women's Tour (Great Britain) - POSTPONED because of Covid-19
- June 26 – July 5: Giro d'Italia Internazionale Femminile (Italy) - CANCELLED because of Covid-19
- July 19: La Course by Le Tour de France (France) - POSTPONED because of Covid-19
- August 8: Postnord UCI WWT Vårgårda West Sweden TTT (Sweden)
- August 9: Postnord UCI WWT Vårgårda West Sweden RR (Sweden)
- August 13-16: Ladies Tour of Norway (Norway)
- August 22: GP de Plouay – Lorient Agglomération Trophée WNT (France)
- August 25-30: Boels Ladies Tour (the Netherlands)
- September 5-6: Ceratizit Madrid Challenge by La Vuelta (Spain)
- October 20: Tour of Guangxi – UCI Women's WorldTour (China)
