After several months of proposals and requests regarding strengthening the safety of racing cyclists, the Steering Committee of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), which met from 10 to 12 June in Aigle, Switzerland, took several decisions on the matter, based on the recommendations developed by SafeR, the new structure dedicated to safety which includes representatives of all cycling stakeholders.
The main measures are the following:
-introduction of a yellow card system
-limitation of the use of earphones in competitions
– modification of the so-called “three kilometers” rule (or “sprint zone”)
-simplification of the method of calculating gaps in the stages with a sprint finish.
All these changes will undergo trial periods, in upcoming races and until the end of the season, in collaboration with interested parties, before being finalized and implemented.
In addition to these measures, the committee has created a new figure, that of SafeR Safety Analyst. The role of the SafeR Safety Analysts, appointed by each of the interested parties, is that of “examine the safety measures put in place by the organisers, particularly with regards to problematic sections of the race routes. This will include recommendations on race routes and risk mitigation measures, as well as best practice training. Practices and policies within teams will also be examined to ensure they take responsibility for the safety of their riders, both in racing and in training. Analysts will actively use the UCI race accident database to ensure accurate collection of factors contributing to race accidents and falls. Collecting accurate and relevant data will help SafeR propose fact-based corrective measures, communicate best practices for organizers and teams, and make recommendations for changes to regulations and organizer guides“.
SafeR will also work in collaboration with companies and partners recognized for their scientific expertise in the sector to carry out studies on different equipment (e.g. hookless rims, wheel profiles, bodysuits, helmets, etc.) in order to define which measurements could be relevant to reduce the risk of accidents and falls. The results of these studies could lead to new regulations and, in the case of equipment used in competition, to the revision of the specifications of such equipment or the introduction of specifications for currently unregulated equipment, as well as the strengthening of authorization procedures before its use in competition.
In particular, here is the explanation of card system:
A “yellow card” system will be introduced from 1 August 2024 (trial phase until 31 December 2024) in men’s and women’s professional road races. These yellow cards will represent a sanction but will not physically exist. However, they will be listed in the race press release published after the finish.
This initiative will have a dissuasive effect on anyone present in the race convoy (runners, Sports Directors, other riders and motorcyclists, etc.) who may engage in behavior that could compromise the safety of the event. Furthermore, the system will aim to make all these subjects responsible, introducing the monitoring of incorrect behavior over time and consequently encouraging respectful behavior.
The race commissioners will then be able to issue these yellow cards for any infringement that could jeopardize the safety of the competition. The 21 racing accidents affected are listed in article 2.12.007 of the UCI Regulations. Yellow cards may be imposed either in addition to the other sanctions provided for in the table of match incidents, or as a separate sanction. It is important to note that the table of race incidents already provides for the possibility of disqualifying a runner (called a red card in other sports). This possibility is not affected by the introduction of the yellow card system.
The development of this measure follows extensive consultation in 2023 within SafeR. It was also approved by the UCI Roads Commission and the Professional Cycling Council in February and March 2024 respectively, prior to the approval of the regulations by the UCI Steering Committee. The system will be introduced to riders and teams ahead of its introduction and will be the subject of educational initiatives led by SafeR, which will be rolled out over the coming months.
The period from 1 August to 31 December 2024 will serve as a trial period during which no further sanctions relating to yellow cards will be imposed: in fact, yellow cards can already be used in UCI WorldTour and UCI Women’s WorldTour events, but during during this period no disqualifications or suspensions will be imposed for the accumulation of yellow cards. Existing sanctions, also listed in the aforementioned racing incidents table of the UCI Regulations, will continue to be imposed, including fines, UCI point deductions, relegations and disqualifications. At the end of the 2024 season, SafeR will carry out a full evaluation of the yellow card system before presenting it to the Professional Cycling Council and then to the UCI Steering Committee.
From 1 January 2025, however, penalties will be imposed for accumulating yellow cards. Furthermore, the system will be extended to UCI ProSeries events (Men and Women Elite), the Olympic Games, the UCI World Championships (Men and Women Elite and Under 23) and the Continental Championships (Men and Women Elite and Under 23).
The UCI will maintain a database of yellow cards issued in accordance with articles 2.12.003bis and 2.12.007 of the UCI Regulations. From 1 January 2025, subject to change following evaluation of the probationary period, the accumulation of yellow cards in a defined period will result in suspension as follows (see also infographic below):
during the same match, anyone who receives two yellow cards will be disqualified from that match and suspended for 7 days, starting from the day after receiving the second yellow card;
anyone who receives three yellow cards within thirty days will be suspended for 14 days, starting from the day following receipt of the third yellow card;
anyone who receives six yellow cards in a period of one year will be suspended for 30 days, starting from the day after receiving the sixth yellow card;
a yellow card which has been taken into account for the imposition of a period of ineligibility will no longer be taken into account in the future.
The use of running earphones:
Limitation of the use of earphones during competition
Still on the subject of improving safety in road racing, the UCI has decided this year to test the effects of a restriction on the use of earphones in competition. The measure will be tested in some professional one-day races and in some stage races. The list of events and stages involved has not yet been defined.
This decision is based on discussions on the topic within SafeR, which led to the conclusion that earphones could be both a source of distraction for runners and a physical danger, as the radio units are mounted on the back, and represent a risk when a large number of teams simultaneously ask their riders to move to the front of the race.
Feedback from all stakeholders will be collected to study the effects of limiting the use of earphones and to consider other measures that could lead to a change in the way in which earphones are used, for example by limiting the use of earphones to two runners per squad.
An overall assessment will be carried out within SafeR at the end of the season, before being presented to the Professional Cycling Council and then to the UCI Steering Committee with a view to a decision on the use of earphones in the future.
Change to the “three kilometre” (or “sprint zone”) rule
The UCI has decided to allow organizers and other interested parties to request, on an experimental basis, a modification of the so-called “three kilometre” (or “sprint zone”) rule (article 2.6. 027 of the UCI Regulations) which applies when a race enters the zone leading to the final sprint and according to which, in the event of a duly reported accident (for example a fall, a mechanical problem or a puncture) in the last three kilometers of a road stage (excluding summit finishes ), the affected rider is credited with the time of the rider or riders he or she was riding with at the time of the accident. The organizer (or other interested party) who requests it may, if justified, obtain an extension of the distance to be taken into account under the aforementioned rule, which may be increased up to a maximum of five kilometres. Any changes must be agreed before the start of the race.
The distance of three kilometers was introduced in 2005, whereas previously it was one kilometre.
This measure intends to take into account the increase in traffic calming infrastructures – a source of danger for pelotons – in an ever-increasing radius from the finishing places of the races. Extending the zone where the rule applies, when necessary, will reduce the pressure on riders during the phase of the race preceding the final sprint.
Simplification of the method of calculating time gaps in stages with a sprint finish
In the same vein, SafeR also examined the method of calculating time gaps in sprint finish stages, introduced in 2018. Currently, according to the rule for calculating gaps, riders in the same group are assigned the same time, depending on provided that no more than one second separates two riders following each other. In other words, if there is a gap of one second or more between two runners, the time of the runners in the second group is calculated based on the gap separating the first runner in each group at the finish line. According to the special protocol in force since 2018, at the request of the event organizer, the gap calculation can be extended to three seconds, but only for the riders of the main group. SafeR has issued a recommendation to test the application of this special three-second gap calculation regime to all competing groups, with the sole exception of clearly established breakaways.
This systematization of the three-second rule is intended to simplify the calculation of gaps in sprint finish stages, to ease the pressure on riders not directly involved in the sprint and to allow them to leave a certain margin with the head of the race – three seconds correspond to a gap of 50 meters rather than 17 meters for a gap of one second – and thus reduce unnecessary risk-taking, particularly for runners aiming for the general classification.
These last two rules (the so-called “three kilometre” or “sprint zone” rule and the method of calculating the gaps in the stages with a sprint finish) can only come into force at the end of a test phase organized during some stages of the next Tour de France with sprint finish.
