The UCI have defended their actions over the change of dates for the RideLondon Classique for 2025, which has led to the organisers saying they have been forced to cancel the WorldTour stage race.
The 2025 WWT calendar, published this morning, mainly led to only minor changes in dates and with most races back in their original places after moving in 2024 due to the Paris Olympics.
However, the RideLondon Classique was moved back a week from the weekend of May 23-25 to June 1, with organisers claiming on Friday that this change came without "consultation or prior warning". They added that given major events need to be planned in central London long in advance, they had no choice but to cancel the three-day stage race.
Cyclingnews reached out to the UCI for their reaction to the organisers' decision and comments.
In a statement sent to Cyclingnews, the UCI defended their decision by arguing that they had been “actively engaged with the event organiser since the beginning of the year to find an alternative date." They added that the decision to cancel the race in 2025 was one that "the UCI regrets".
The UCI continued by claiming that "the dates Ford RideLondon Classique requested are not available as they clash with the Vuelta a Burgos Feminas, which is part of a three-event block of racing in Spain."
"It should be noted that these three Spanish events are held consecutively to reduce team travel. In addition, a fundamental principle of the UCI Women’s WorldTour is that no events overlap.”
The UCI then went on to further justify its decision over the date change by claiming that it was a knock-on effect from a rescheduling of the National Championships to their usual, pre-2024, calendar slot.
"The requested change of date for the Ford RideLondon Classique is due to the scheduling of National Championships, which are normally held the last full week of June, but were held one week earlier in 2024 due to the Paris Olympic Games," the UCI statement said.
"This allowed for the Ford RideLondon Classique to take place in May in 2024. For 2025, the National Championships will return to the standard schedule, and events on the 2025 UCI International Calendar will need to shift dates accordingly."
"For the UCI Women’s WorldTour, it should be noted that all events except the Ford RideLondon Classique have accepted their dates."
In 2023, the RideLondon Classique took place from May 26 to 28 and in 2022, its first edition as a stage race, it took place from May 27 to 29. The previous two years it was cancelled because of the pandemic and before that, it was a one-day Classic, taking place in late July and early August.
