UCI verbally agrees to inaugural La Course by La Vuelta

Plans for the proposed women’s one-day race held in conjunction with the final stage of the Vuelta a España appear to be moving ahead after the UCI made a verbal agreement with the Royal Spanish Cycling Federation (RFEC) to add it back onto the calendar, according to the Spanish newspaper AS.

Last February, Vuelta a España director Javier Guillén was keen on hosting a one-day women’s event ahead of the finish of the men’s Grand Tour, after the Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO) announced its plans to host La Course by Le Tour de France.

Guillén later confirmed to Cyclingnews last October about his more concrete plans to host the one-day women's event on the final stage of the Vuelta a España on the Paseo de la Castellana boulevard in central Madrid.

“We’re working on the details and currently putting it all together,” Guillén told Cyclingnews at that time. “It would be on the last day, in Madrid.”

“It would be very similar to La Course, and have the same objective: to help boost women’s cycling and try to give it the same kind of high-profile it gained in France on the last day of the men’s Tour.”

In December, however, the UCI denied sanctioning for the event because its September 13 date conflicted with several other UCI events; the Lotto Belgium Tour, the final stage of the Giro Toscana Int. Femminile and the Chrono Champenois-Trophée Européen.

The Belgium Tour has since changed its dates in order to make space for La Course by La Vuelta, and will now start on September 8 and finish on Sept 11.

Although AS has reported that the UCI made a verbal agreement with RFEC to continue with La Course by La Vuelta, there has been no other confirmation from the UCI or ASO. Furthermore, it is not yet listed on the UCI’s calendar of women's races in September.