Giro d’Italia race organizers have had to reject their ambitious plans for a fastest descender contest at this year’s race. Well, it’s because riders have found it dangerous.
The controversial plans that would have seen participants rewarded €500 prizes for generating the quickest speeds on descending sections of the course, lasting for three weeks, with the jackpot €5000 – were unveiled several days ago.
However, they quickly spurred worries from potential participants as well as officials from the number one cycling governing body, the UCI.
Team Sky’s Dutch rider, Wout Poels unveiled on Twitter that stimulating recklessness could prove dangerous, while Trek-Segafredo’s Jasper Stuyven added that organisers should have been ashamed of themselves.
In addition to this, the president of the UCI Road Commission, Tom van Damme had illustrated the new contest as an unacceptable thing, going versus current measures to enhance the overall safety of professional cycling.