Sam Bennett: With no racing the whole structure will fall apart

Sam Bennett won the Race Torquay race in Australia
Irish road race champion Sam Bennett (Deceuninck-QuickStep) wins the 2020 Race Torquay race in Australia (Image credit: Getty Images)

Times are tough. Races are being cancelled rather than postponed, and teams are feeling the pinch as they make cuts and furlough staff. The world of pro cycling is no different from virtually any other sport – or sector of the economy – but as the UCI grapples with factors that are well outside its remit, riders can only speculate about what the future might hold.

In Ireland, Deceuninck-QuickStep's Sam Bennett is well into the second month of his lockdown. He can train on the road but only with a 2km radius of home, and he can pass the time riding virtually on Zwift. But the Irishman is desperate to start racing again, and with provisional dates set for the Tour de France (August 29 to September 20), he at least has something to target – even if the likelihood of a Tour during that timeframe seems hopelessly optimistic.

Daniel Benson

Daniel Benson was the Editor in Chief at Cyclingnews.com between 2008 and 2022. Based in the UK, he joined the Cyclingnews team in 2008 as the site's first UK-based Managing Editor. In that time, he reported on over a dozen editions of the Tour de France, several World Championships, the Tour Down Under, Spring Classics, and the London 2012 Olympic Games. With the help of the excellent editorial team, he ran the coverage on Cyclingnews and has interviewed leading figures in the sport including UCI Presidents and Tour de France winners.