UAE Tour Features All WorldTour Teams, WILL Go Ahead
The UAE Tour will go ahead, its organizers have told Cyclry. The race is scheduled to run from February 21 to 27.
If that all sounds too peachy for a 2021 that’s already trying its best to upstage its big brother, here’s a big red flag: the race route has still not been confirmed. Only the start and finish locations of the first WorldTour race of the season are set in stone. That’s Abu Dhabi and… err… Abu Dhabi. Which sounds suspiciously like they’re going to lock the riders in their hotel rooms for a week. Again.
Yes, last year that’s what happened. Coronavirus swept through the peloton and the race was canceled after five days. The entire peloton, plus all staff, was placed in lockdown in a hotel, with little transparency about when they’d be free. Four teams spent such extended periods in quarantine that they missed their next races. Which, ah, was probably for the best.
But think positive thoughts. All 19 WorldTeams have confirmed and committed to riding this year’s edition. Mathieu van de Poel’s ProTeam Alpecin-Fenix will also be there.
And good news: The UAE Tour organizers tell us that, “details of the strict COVID-19 protocols designed to ensure the safety of all riders, staff and everyone involved in the race will be released shortly.”
The UAE Tour has been a surprisingly solid addition to the cycling calendar so far, with strong teams, some killer climbs, and great sprint finishes. It’ll probably take a while for us to get over the Lockdown Edition™ of 2020 though.
Provisional Team List
- AG2R CITROEN TEAM
- ASTANA – PREMIER TECH
- BAHRAIN VICTORIOUS
- BORA – HANSGROHE
- COFIDIS
- DECEUNINCK – QUICK-STEP
- EF EDUCATION – NIPPO
- GROUPAMA – FDJ
- INEOS GRENADIERS
- INTERMARCHÉ – WANTY – GOBERT MATÉRIAUX
- ISRAEL START-UP NATION
- JUMBO-VISMA
- LOTTO SOUDAL
- MOVISTAR TEAM
- TEAM BIKEEXCHANGE
- TEAM DSM
- TEAM QHUBEKA ASSOS
- TREK – SEGAFREDO
- UAE TEAM EMIRATES
- ALPECIN-FENIX