Organised by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), the annual UCI Women’s WorldTour and UCI WorldTour Seminar convened the various stakeholders of the leading series in professional women’s and men’s road cycling in Geneva (Switzerland) for two days of meetings on 10 and 11 December.
Among the approximately 160 participants representing the UCI, race organisers, teams and riders, were the newly elected President of the Association Internationale des Organisateurs de Courses Cyclistes (AIOCC), Javier Guillén; the President of the Association Internationale des Groupes Cyclistes Professionnels (AIGCP), Brent Copeland; the President of the Cyclistes Professionnels Associés (CPA), Adam Hansen; and the Manager of CPA Women, Alessandra Cappellotto.
Following a welcome address from the President of the Professional Cycling Council (PCC), Tom Van Damme, UCI President David Lappartient spoke with seminar participants about key topics relating to professional women’s and men’s road cycling, with a particular focus on governance and security.
UCI Sports Director Peter Van den Abeele then presented an overview of the key moments in road cycling for 2025, notably the 2025 UCI Road World Championships in Kigali (Rwanda), the first UCI World Championships for the discipline to be held on the African continent. He also spoke about the upcoming 2026 UCI Road World Championships in Montréal (Canada), which will welcome the world’s best male and female riders in just over nine months’ time.
The crucial area of rider safety in both men’s and women’s road racing was the focus of a roundtable with members of SafeR, the body dedicated to safety in professional road cycling, now led by former Swiss professional rider Rubens Bertogliati. SafeR brings together representatives from all key stakeholders in the sport: organisers, teams, riders, and the UCI.
This year, the registration process for both events and teams was particularly significant, as it marked the start of a new three-year licensing cycle for professional men’s and women’s road cycling.
With regards to the teams, PwC – the external auditor appointed by the UCI to oversee the registration of UCI professional teams – presented the progress made in team registration for 2026. This new cycle sees a slight decrease in the number of professional teams. However, It should be noted that new teams, both men’s and women’s, are being created. In view of the outcome of the registration procedure the Professional Cycling Council (PCC), which met yesterday ahead of the seminar, decided to request that the UCI Management Committee open an allocation procedure for the 15th UCI Women’s WorldTour licence for the 2027 season. If confirmed, the allocation criteria will be specified with the aim of awarding this remaining licence for the two final years of the 2026–2028 licensing cycle.
Concerning organisers, the number of events registered on the UCI Women’s WorldTour and UCI WorldTour calendars remains stable.
On the eve of this new cycle, the seminar provided an opportunity to discuss the role of Commissaires, which is essential for the proper conduct of competitions, addressing both the challenges of the role and the ongoing work of the UCI to continue improving the quality of officiating in cycling events.
Medical matters were also the subject of an update that included the latest research on Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (REDs). As awareness of this syndrome is crucial to prevent it from adversely affecting riders’ health, the UCI presented tools designed to raise athletes’ awareness of the health risks associated with uncontrolled weight-loss strategies and to assist doctors in diagnosing REDs. Seminar participants were also informed of the launch of an accidentology study on the 2026 UCI WorldTour and UCI Women’s WorldTour, conducted under the supervision of the UCI Medical Department. Additionally, the latest findings from a scientific study demonstrating that ketone supplements do not enhance post-exercise recovery were presented.
On the topic of integrity, the International Testing Agency (ITA) – the independent organisation that has managed the UCI’s operational anti-doping activities since 2021, with the UCI retaining responsibility for results management and the prosecution of anti-doping rule violations – presented a detailed overview of its anti-doping programme for cycling as well as recent updates. This programme grows stronger each year, thanks to a constant emphasis on education and further investigation.
As concern over climate change intensifies, the UCI continues to deepen its collaboration with professional road cycling’s key stakeholders in order to define the next steps of its sustainability strategy for the sport.
This collaboration has led to the creation of a Professional Cycling Climate Action Working Group, bringing together representatives from teams, riders, organisers, and sponsors. Seminar attendees learned about the group’s mission and vision, before some members joined a roundtable on the importance of sustainability in cycling and the wider role of sport in addressing climate challenges.
At the conclusion of the seminar, UCI President David Lappartient said: “Professional men’s and women’s road cycling enjoyed another outstanding year in 2025, highlighted by the organisation of the UCI Road World Championships on the African continent for the first time. Collaboration among the stakeholders of road cycling is essential for the healthy development of our sport, and the UCI Women’s WorldTour and UCI WorldTour Seminar, which brings everyone together, plays a key role in this regard. The 2025 edition demonstrated that all actors are driven by a shared desire to keep advancing cycling, to make it more popular, safer, and more sustainable. I thank them all and look forward to the upcoming season, as well as to continuing our collaborative efforts in a constructive spirit.”