Tour of the Alps will not take place in 2020

Tour of the Alps organisers GS Alto Garda have announced that the race will not take place in the 2020, with attention instead turning to organising the 2021 edition. 

The 2020 race was set to take place on April 20-24 before the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic wiped out the racing calendar. The race, this season part of what was set to be the rebranded UCI ProSeries but struggled to find a suitable date in the UCI's newly announced post-COVID-19 calendar running from August to October, which so far, consists exclusively of WorldTour races.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the organisers said that there are no "significant perspectives to identify a new date" for the race, given the current uncertain climate.

"It is clear we are not in the position to organise the 2020 Tour of the Alps at an adequate level in these conditions," said Giacomo Santini, president of GS Alto Garda.

"The consequences of the COVID-19 outbreak and its impact on the world of sports have led to a choice with no real alternatives, totally shared with our partners, which we wish to thank for their constant support during this phase.

"People's health and safety come first, and sports such as cycling have tough challenges to face in this regard. This is why we now wish to set our goal to 2021, in our usual calendar slot in April."

The organising committee will start preparation for next year's event – the 44th edition – soon, with the goal of a "massive participation" of WorldTour teams.

The race – previously known as the Giro del Trentino – is among the premier warm-up events for the Giro d'Italia, with a host of riders and teams taking part ahead of the Corsa Rosa. 

In 2019, five WorldTour teams took part as Ineos youngster Pavel Sivakov took the overall victory. Past winners include Geraint Thomas, Cadel Evans, Vincenzo Nibali (twice) and Thibaut Pinot.