Director of Challenge Mallorca fumes after Trofeo Andratx cancellation: "It was the riders who decided to stop... It seems to us a lack of respect"
Cycling
The Challenge Mallorca has suffered today the unexpected cancellation of its penultimate race. The Trofeo Andratx was brought to a premature finish, just 25 km after starting due to dangerous conditions for the riders.
The mess has now exploded into controversy though, after the post-race statements of the director of the Challenge Mallorca series, collected by Jordi Tomàs. It was expected that he would make a statement on the matter to clarify what happened. What he has stated is that the decision to suspend the race has been one from the riders and not the organization.
"It is a complicated and sad day. We have been left without a race, and we have not been able to save the weather and non-weather conditions that have occurred," began pointing out Manuel Hernandez, before making it clear how upset they are with the situation. "We started from Andratx and there were a couple of falls. At kilometre 23, the President of the Technical Jury was visited by the 3 riders who represent the CPA (Riders Association) in our race. They communicated that they saw the road as very unsafe, dangerous, and that they had taken the decision to stop", he added.
"I want to make it clear that it was the riders, and not the organization, who decided to stop. The jury didn't have much choice because the peloton had stopped. There was not much of a solution. It is true that the teams had been warned that the road was dangerous, and to slow down," continued the Challenge director.
"We respect the decision of the racers. We do not share it, neither we nor the jury. We didn't like at all that the organization had no say in this decision. It seems to us a lack of respect towards us, since a lot of money has been spent. There has been no solution. Against that we have not been able to do anything, but we show our absolute rejection," he said.
Y este es el comunicado oficial que ha emitido la organización. pic.twitter.com/cXd3mU3Uji
— Le Puncheur (@LePuncheur_) February 1, 2025
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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- This is a really interesting idea, which, if well prepared could even be very successful. Very little money needs to be involved for a first season and any success could lead to rapid interest from sponsors.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
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- I get the point totally. We live in the snowflake society where some riders forget they are getting paid to ride and get results. When they have a few issues they try to look outside of the real issue instead of themselves. It odd so many of the team are making no complaints and getting on with their job. If you do not like what you do find another job simples. Tough love as my mum would say.paultryan200207-11-2026
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- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
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