A wing change in UCI World Tour. Tour de Pologne to test new regulations

Big changes are coming to cycling. One of revolutionary new ideas is going be tested in the 81st Tour de Pologne! On Polish roads we will get the first real answer to how much do the radio communication affect racing.

Works have been going for several months on the project called “SafeR”, which – as the name suggests – is intended to lead to greater road safety for cyclists. The team included representatives from all cycling parties: riders, teams, race organisers and UCI.

Two key changes, which entered the testing phase on August 1st, are: yellow cards for unsportsmanlike behaviour (for riders, sports directors, but also journalists, photographers moving in the peloton) and a reduction of radio communication between sports directors and riders.

Until now, each rider rode with a radio receiver and an earpiece. This ensured that the teammates were in communication with each other, but above all with the sports director, travelling in the technical car. As a result, many stages were highly influenced not only by the riders, but also by the directors riding behind them.

According to some experts, it also led to many dangerous situations, e.g. before a narrowing of the road, when the whole peloton was being told to move to the front of the group. Of course, the radio also allows a lot of important information to be transmitted, when the weather changes or other random events on the route occure.

“So far, in fact for years now, we have been hearing opinions and discussions on this topic. Whether it is better with or without radio. Now we’re moving into the testing phase and that’s probably the most valuable thing. We will finally find out, how taking away the communication changes the flow of the race” – claims Lang Team General Manager and former Lotto-Soudal Sports Director John Lelangue, who is happy that the new solutions will be tested on three stages during the 81st Tour de Pologne.

Here are the details. On the Stage 3 (Wałbrzych – Duszniki-Zdrój, COS) and Stage 4 (Kudowa-Zdrój – Prudnik), each team will be able to provide two riders with radios. The selection will be made by every sports director. On Stage 5 (Katowice – Katowice) no one will have radios. The remaining stages will be held in “the old way”. John Lelangue explains why such decisions were made.

 “As an organiser, we were free to choose the test stages. We decided that the first one would not be the best idea, as there is always increased nervousness at the start of the race, caused by the fight for the jerseys. The second stage is an individual time trial, so this test would not tell us much. So we opted for the next three days of competition. Stage 3 will be the more difficult one, in the mountains. It will be interesting to see how the riders with limited communication behave when the peloton breaks into groups. Stage $ should end with a sprint, just as should stage five. These days can therefore also provide us with some interesting conclusions. At the same time, we can assure you that the reduction in radio communication will not mean a lack in information. There will always be motorbikes by the breakaway and the peloton with a board and a message about the time differences. On stages 3 and 4, riders with radios will have a coloured starting number so that everyone knows who is in communication with the director” – Lelangue mentions.

If the new arrangements work, they could be made permanent from next season, in all UCI World Tour races. It is also worth mentioning that the World Championships, European Championships and Olympic Games have been held without radio communication for years now.