The UCI has announced the calendar for the 2021 Women's WorldTour, with the omission of the Giro Rosa being the biggest surprise in what is largely an unchanged set of races.
The Giro Rosa, held this year from September 11-19 due to COVID-19 pandemic, will instead form part of the ProSeries at 2.Pro status next season. It will retain its traditional July slot, however, running from July 2-11.
While the reasons for the Giro Rosa losing its Women's WorldTour spot have yet to be confirmed, the 2020 edition of the race failed to provide the minimum of 45 minutes of live television coverage required for all Women's WorldTour races.
It is understood that other race organisers, who met the live television coverage requirements, were unhappy that the Giro Rosa organisation failed to do so.
The other major change for 2021 will be the addition of the Vuelta a Burgos Feminas, which moves up from the ProSeries. The Spanish stage race will run from May 20-23, bringing the UCI Women's WorldTour to 24 events - 17 one-day and seven stage races.
As usual, the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race will kick off the Women's WorldTour calendar on January 30, while the Tour of Guangxi ends the season on October 19. La Course by Le Tour de France will be held on July 18, a return to a later slot after this year's race in Nice, which coincided with the Grand Départ of the men's Tour de France. 2021's La Course will coincide with the final Tour de France stage in Paris.
The Women's Paris-Roubaix, a new addition to the 2020 post-COVID-19 calendar, will move to a traditional spring date, as expected. The second edition of the cobbled Classic will run on the same day as the men's race, April 11.
In a statement, the UCI noted that the staging of events on the 2021 calendar will depend on the COVID-19 situation in those countries and regions.
"The UCI is pleased that despite the difficult situation, it has been able to finalise the 2021 UCI International Calendars for numerous disciplines and find solutions that take into account the postponement of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games to 2021," the statement read.
"The staging of the events in question will nevertheless depend on the development of the health situation in the regions concerned."
2021 Women's WorldTour calendar
- 30-Jan-21: Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race - Elite Women's Race
- 6-Mar-21: Strade Bianche
- 14-Mar-21: UCI Women's WorldTour Ronde van Drenthe
- 21-Mar-21: Trofeo Alfredo Binda - Comune di Cittiglio
- 25-Mar-21: AG Driedaagse Brugge-De Panne
- 28-Mar-21: Gent-Wevelgem In Flanders Fields
- 4-Apr-21: Ronde van Vlaanderen - Tour des Flandres
- 11-Apr-21: Paris-Roubaix Femmes
- 18-Apr-21: Amstel Gold Race Ladies Edition
- 21-Apr-21: La Flèche Wallonne Féminine
- 25-Apr-21: Liège-Bastogne-Liège Femmes
- 06 May-08 May 2021: Tour of Chongming Island - UCI Women's WorldTour
- 14 May-16 May 2021: Itzulia Women
- 20 May-23 May 2021: Vuelta a Burgos Feminas
- 30-May-21: RideLondon Classique
- 07 Jun-12 Jun 2021: Women's Tour
- 18-Jul-21: La Course by Le Tour de France
- 7-Aug-21: Postnord UCI WWT Vårgårda WestSweden TTT
- 8-Aug-21: Postnord UCI WWT Vårgårda WestSweden RR
- 12 Aug-15 Aug 2021: Ladies Tour of Norway
- 24 Aug-29 Aug 2021: Boels Ladies Tour
- 30-Aug-21: GP de Plouay - Lorient- Agglomération Trophée CERATIZIT
- 03 Sep-05 Sep 2021: Ceratizit Challenge by la Vuelta
- 19-Oct-21: Tour of Guangxi - UCI Women's WorldTour
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