Tony Martin: No Tour de France would be disastrous from a commercial point of view
By Cyclingnews
'I think it would be a death sentence for one or two teams' says German Jumbo-Visma rider

Jumbo-Visma's Tony Martin said on Thursday that if the 2020 Tour de France doesn't happen at all as a result of the coronavirus pandemic continuing, then the consequences for professional cycling could be dire from a commercial point of view, and may signal the closure of some pro teams.
A big question mark remains over the running of this year's Grande Boucle, which is now set to run from August 29-September 20, if it's deemed safe to do so. The organisers, and most of the riders, teams, sponsors and fans, would like to see the 2020 edition take place; various health experts, meanwhile, have stated that scheduling the Tour later, or not at all, would be more prudent as the COVID-19 crisis continues, while France's sports minister, Roxana Maracineanu, suggested this week that bans on public gatherings could continue into September.
Giving his opinion to L'Equipe on Thursday, Tony Martin said: "For now, we can't exactly predict the consequences of the possible cancellation of the Tour de France. I think it would be a death sentence for one or two teams.
"Without being too dramatic, I think a lot of sponsors invest in cycling because of the Tour," the four-time time trial world champion continued. "If there is no Tour, then it'd be disastrous for the sponsors from a commercial point of view. I hope we don't get there. But if it's cancelled, sponsors will have to think long term.
"In 2021, the Tour de France will take place – we're relatively certain of that. Before that, there'll be other great races, and there'd still be a lot of interest in the other end-of-season races without the Tour," Martin said, referring to the likes of one-day races the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix, which may both take place in mid-to-late October. "But I'd be very happy if the Tour takes place as planned at the end of August."
Sign up to the Cyclingnews Newsletter. You can unsubscribe at any time. For more information about how to do this, and how we hold your data, please see our privacy policy
Thank you for signing up to Cycling News. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.