Government decrees put races in doubt, Drenthe and Catalunya called off
Numerous races have been called off and others have been cast into doubt as governments and organizing bodies in Flanders, the Netherlands, and Spain announced blanket stoppages to sporting events on Thursday amid coronavirus concerns.
The Ronde van Drenthe, which would have been the next race on the women’s WorldTour, and the Volta a Catalunya are the biggest events to have been called off thus far. Further details on cancellations are expected. The pro peloton has now seen its first two identified positives for the virus, with Dmitry Strakhov (Gazprom-Rusvelo) and Fernando Gaviria (UAE-Team Emirates) recently confirming positive tests in the United Arab Emirates.
The Netherlands
The Dutch government issued new measures to contain the COVID-19 virus that cancel all events of over 100 people until March 31.
The Drentse 8 van Westerveld (Women, UCI 1.1), de Bevrijdingsronde van Drenthe (Men, 1.1) and the Bevrijdingsronde van Drenthe (Women’s WorldTour) won’t take place this weekend, as confirmed by race organizers.
Many teams, including Mitchelton-Scott and Movistar, had already cancelled their participations. Italian riders and teams were unable to travel to Drenthe and American riders like Emily Newson of Tibco-SVB had opted to travel home following the announcement of travel restrictions from Europe to the United States.
The cancellation fo the Ronde van Drenthe is another blow for the Women’s WorldTour amid the coronavirus crisis. So far only the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race has taken place; Strade Bianche, Trofeo Binda, and Ronde van Drenthe have been cancelled, while the Tour of Chongming Island was already postponed in the earlier stages of the virus outbreak in China.
The race cancellation in the Netherlands also halts the Olympia’s Tour (Men, UCI2.2), one of the renowned races for development teams, which was supposed to start on March 18.
The new decree also includes museums, theaters, concerts and all events where more than 100 people gather. Schools will remain open because the closing of the schools and parents missing work due to the care for their children will seriously influence fields like healthcare, police and fire services, the Prime Minister of the Netherlands explained.
Spain
The Spanish cycling federation announced on Thursday called off all races through the next two weeks. That period does not quite cover the March 23 planned start date of the Volta a Catalunya, the next stage race on the men’s WorldTour calendar, but shortly thereafter organizers announced that the Volta a Catalunya would be not be held as initially planned.
The race has been postponed “following the preventive measures against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) ordered by the Catalan Government.”
This year would have been the 100th edition of the race, which has not been halted since the end of the Spanish Civil War in 1939.
Organizers said that they will seek a rescheduling date with the UCI.
Belgium
Meanwhile, in Belgium, the Flemish Minister of Sport held a crisis meeting with various Flemish sporting organizations on Thursday, leading to a decision to call off amateur events through March. At least for the moment, the many big races on the upcoming calendar have not yet been cancelled, but clarification on the status of those events is expected to come soon.
The month of March includes the planned dates for Nokere Koerse, the Bredene Koksijde Classic, the Driedaagse Brugge-De Panne, the E3 BinckBank Classic, and Gent-Wevelgem, while Dwars door Vlaanderen and the Tour of Flanders both take place in April.
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