DISCUSSION | 9 rules the UCI could implement to improve cycling's safety - But which one is more important?

Cycling is a sport in constant change and unfortunately, in recent years it is widely agreed that it is becoming more dangerous. Speeds are higher, there is more tension, more need for results and UCI points... This, combined with the need for structural reforms leads to a number of ideas to be constantly suggested. We discuss some of the most requested changes.

Of course, there would be dozens of changes necessary for the sport and largely, it depends on the point of views of the person suggesting. Riders, DS' and spectators will each also have widely different points of views which influence what needs to be changed. This article includes a group of possibilities from all groups.

Note: There are certainly other changes that could improve the safety in the sport. We would love to know your opinions in the comments of our article or social media posts. What do you think is the most significant change and what have we missed?

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1. Slower speeds - But is this actually plausible? 

This is a controversial argument. The sport has been getting faster and faster ,with riders physically performing better due to improved training methods and nutrition; teams having more aerodynamic bikes and equipment; and most because teams become more and more aware of specific moments of races which require good positioning which leads to extremely fast battles for positioning. There is no sign whatsoever that the sport will slow down in any way, and on the contrary it should continue to get faster and faster.

But a big argument for safety has been launched specially by Tour de France director Christian Prudhomme. “It is absolutely necessary to reduce speed by appropriate measures: the riders are going too fast!” However no specific details have been seriously discussed or proposed when it comes to the sport as a whole. This is unlikely to be the case. But playing devil's advocate, this can indeed be beneficial in specific circumstances - such as the larger use of police, security or commissaires to point out more often locations of potential risk, but specifically the 2024 Paris-Roubaix's 'chicane' entrance to the Trouée d'Arenberg is a clear-cut example of how this can be effective.

2024 Paris-Roubaix's pre-Trouée d'Arenberg chicane was highly criticized, despite eliminating one of the most dangerous locations in the sport

A huge controversy broke out in relation to the addition of an artificial chicane at the entrance of Arenberg, a brutal five-star cobbled sector that has seen terrifying crashes at very high speeds at it's start in the past. Most riders agreed with this proposal, and on the day of the race neither did it cause any issue or affect the race in any way. Yet the decision was met with a massive swarm of criticism including eventual winner Mathieu van der Poel wondering if it was a joke; whilst some pundits such as former Vuelta a España winner Chris Horner who wrote "Personally, I’d rather crash on some holy cobbles than wrapped up in brutal fencing and/or pavement a few feet shy of the promised land. I think a lot of riders will end their day thinking 'well, I almost made it to the Arenberg…'"

Matteo Jorgenson of Visma was extremely bothered by the criticism of this decision, writing "Is this what fans want to see? Riders completely covered in blood after sliding face-first at 50mph/80kph on sharp rocks in a forest?". At the end of the day it cannot be proven that the chicane improved safety, but the majority of riders supported the decision and it is a good example of this being a beneficial change.

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2. Disk Brakes. Yay or nay? 

Better breaking efficiency is an argument for safety when it comes to the use of disk brakes on road bikes. Over the past few years, these have taken over the peloton, being the new normal when it comes to braking options. However not everyone agrees, arguing that disk brakes makes it more likely that riders drift/skid during rough braking, but also the very rare but real cases of riders hitting a hot disk brake in the midst of a crash which ends up burning them, or even creating large cuts - once again, Visma's Jorgenson himself was a victim of this.

There is no unanimous consensus on what option is safer, but it would be possible to conduct a query within the peloton regarding which they find safer or the better option, and make a decision based on the riders' opinions.

Mathieu van der Poel crashed whilst riding disk brakes in the rain en route to winning the 2023 Glasgow World Championships. @Sirotti

3. More protective equipment 

Helmets are a mandatory part of cycling nowadays, but it doesn't go that far back the period in which they were not - something unimaginable in the current sport's outlook. The UCI tried to implement mandatory use of helmets in the sport back in 1991 but the riders themselves actually took a strike that year in Paris-Nice and blocked the attempt. In the following years, several riders including Fabio Casartelli at the 1995 Tour de France died after crashing and hitting their head on the ground. But it was only 12 years later in 2003 that this rule was implemented and currently there are no vocal voices against them. 

Could cycling have more protective gear realistically? Shoulder, elbow and knee pads quickly come to mind, but it is unrealistic that riders would want to take this on. The most commonly brought up topic is that of an airbag system ingrained into the riders' jerseys, in a similar way that motorbike or ski jumping gear works. It's unlikely, but not unfeasible possibility.

Swiss rider Stefan Küng recently made a strong argument for this to be looked at closely: "If an airbag really works and becomes mandatory in the race, it could be a solution,” he suggested. “It will cost money. But what is 500 euros if you can prevent serious injuries or even deaths with it?”

4. Implement a rule for a minimum body fat %

Not a commonly suggested rule, but one which has a certain point. Cycling is a sport where riders' cardiovascular systems are taken to the very limit. The calorie intake of pro riders is amongst the highest in pro athletes, because the schedule of a regular pro simply burns off so many calories that it is a must. Hence, cyclists typically have very low body fat, and this is specially the case for climbers and Grand Tour contenders. Normally speaking, the minimum safe body health fat percentage is of 8% for men and 12% for women - although these numbers may of course vary. It is safe to say that many riders are in this field.

It is a fully accepted part of the sport that riders will look to shed as much weight as possible so as to improve their power-to-weight ration (more commonly termed W/Kg), a key aspect to climbing performances. Many riders take it to the absolute limit, whilst the focus on diet all-year long is more and more a common part of the sport. The use of substances of aid weight loss has also been frequently found in riders including banned substances. Visma's Michel Hessmann's use of a diuretic in 2023 is proof that this continues to happen even at the highest level, regardless of it being proven to be purposeful or not.

Extremely low body fat may lead to severe health issues and these individuals typically struggle quite a lot in cold and rainy conditions, making them extra vulnerable to illnesses. In women, it may also lead to more irregularities in the menstrual cycle, besides a whole host of possible consequences that apply to both genders.

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5. Ban potential use of carbon monoxide rebreathing

A recent topic, which has been brought up in June. Three teams (UAE Team Emirates, Team Visma | Lease a Bike and Israel - Premier Tech) were confirmed to use devices called carbon monoxide rebreathers. Largely, the argument is that they are used to test riders and evaluate the effect of altitude training camps. But it can never be given as a certainty that these devices have never been used with the purpose of performance enhancing. It is possible, with these, to have small doses of carbon monoxide which could potentially increase riders' VO2 max values, increasing their ability to turn oxygen into energy - a key aspect of pro cycling, specially for climbers.

We may never have the answers as to if this has been done by World Tour teams or riders, and if this could actually have a real effect. As of this time the UCI is actively pushing for WADA to make a decision on whether the method should be banned or not, taking into consideration the scientific consensus. A net positive, as for obvious reasons the inhalation of carbon monoxide can lead to health complications or even death if misused.

Tadej Pogacar's UAE Team Emirates and Jonas Vingegaard's Team Visma | Lease a Bike are known to have used carbon monoxide rebreathers. @Sirotti

6. ProTeams only allowed to race 1 Grand Tour per season

Currently, the two ProTeams that score the most UCI points on a particular season get automatic wildcards to all Grand Tours of the next season. Currently, this is Lotto Dstny and Israel - Premier Tech who have those 2 positions guarranteed out of the 4 that can be handed out. Whilst Lotto is expected to not race the Giro, this rule still influences tremendously the startlists of Grand Tours. The Italian, French and Spanish ProTeams specially heavily depend on these races and every year there is a big fight for a spot in the biggest races in the world.

There is a rule in place that says that only the Top40 teams in the UCI rankings can compete in Grand Tours, and this will soon be changed to the teams in the Top30 (aka the World Tour teams and the 12 next best ones). This will lead to more UCI points chasing than what already exists. But the reality is that there are teams that will not race the Grand Tours they desire, it is inevitable, but you will also have quality teams that won't manage to take part in a single Grand Tour. Perhaps the Top30 rule could still be implemented, and each of the 12 non-World Tour teams could be split into the three Grand Tours, four racing each. Each Top12 ProTeam would be assured a Grand Tour which would largely stimulate the economic and competitive growth in the second division.

Because of the importance given to UCI points, teams pressure their riders into scoring as many points as possible. Many riders, specially those of lower levels, are equally pressured into taking more and more risks for the sake of obtaining these points. The stakes are incredibly high for many which increases the level that many are willing to go to fight for results that ordinarily would not mean much.

Anthony Turgis won the famous 'gravel stage' at this year's Tour de France for ProTeam TotalEnergies. @Sirotti

7. Actually enforce properly and consistently the rules in place... (penalizations, corners in sprints, barriers, ...)

This is in the end such an important point. Given, it is impossible to enforce rules to 100% consistency, seeing that it is simply not possible to have the exact same commissaires in all races of the UCI calendar. However there is very valid criticism when it comes to how the UCI's own rules are applied.

As brief examples, we could take a look at the rule that says that sprint finishes cannot have a turn in the final 200 meters, which is a fair and common sense rule, yet is is consistently broken by race organizers and seemingly there are no consequences. These lead to crashes, and it's severity may be increased with downhill sprint finishes which continue to exist in pro cycling as well. There has been the opportunity to learn from past mistakes, and enforcing this is completely plausible for race organizers and UCI commissaires.

Another one is the penalizations, which are sometimes confusing and do not follow the same logic even within the same race. Fines for public urination, drafting behind a vehicle, being pushed by teammates, etc... During stage-races these are implemented daily, but there are occasions where the penalization is either too small or exaggerated. The UCI should be capable of revaluating incidents and changing the consequence of the incident within a certain period of time, taking into consideration feedback from fans, teams and organizers - thus making it a system that features less controversial decisions.

UCI rules state there cannot be a turn in the final 200 meters of a flat bunch sprint finish. This was not enforced at the 2024 European Championships, as seen above. There was a massive crash mid-sprint at the finale of the women's junior race. @Sirotti

8. Yellow cards

Recently tested, and soon to be fully implemented in 2025. Risky or dangerous behaviour in the peloton or sprints will be met with yellow cards, or even red cards, the system used in football and many sports. Arguably, this could is a good change, because it will bring more consequences for riders who put others' safety at risk. However it is very easy to predict that there will be inconsistencies in it's use and that it will quickly fall victim of criticism from fans, riders and team's alike. However it has the potential to actually make a change in riders' overall behaviour and willingness to take risks specially in bunch sprints.

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9. Race radios everywhere! 

An interesting topic. Having race radios in racing is seemingly one of the topics where riders are almost unanimously in agreement, and most fans argue the same. The lack of race radios lead to chaotic racing, senseless tactics and a general sense of confusion. There is still an unusual rule in cycling which is that radios are not allowed in Olympic Games and World Championships. The 2021 Olympics victory of Austria's Anna Kiesenhofer was an inspiring achievement, but when Annemiek van Vleuten crossed the line in second place and celebrated her assumed win, the race was heavily stained.

The peloton was not aware that there was a rider in the head of the race still, and raced as if there wasn't. It can be heavily argued that this race was actually decided by the non-presence of radios. But in the bigger picture, the Olympic Games and World Championships simply do not represent a regular cycling race. But besides the spectacle side of it, now safety is also a major issue, since the passing of junior rider Murriel Furrer at the Zurich World Championships.

The female junior rider crashed in a descent and went off-road, and was not found until over an hour later the incident. She would later die as a result of her injuries. Whether this could've been prevented by her having a radio or not we may never know, but the fact that there is a realistic possibility that the answer is yes brings in a huge debate. Cycling takes place outdoors and unfortunately, on rare instance such a situation may unfold. Having a radio can at least allow the rider to inform the team or race of a crash which would allow for faster and more effective medical attention.

Junior rider Muriel Furrier passed away after crashing at the 2024 World Championships. She had no radio and was only found over an hour after her fall. @Sirotti