"My statements were disproportionate" - Tour des Pyrenees director apologizes but states race will not return

The Tour des Pyrenees had quite the spotlight last week but for the wrong reasons. Race director Pascal Baudron has apologized for his words following the race, explained the process behind assuring the safety of the race, but has said the race would not return in a growing trend of races disappearing from the calendar.

"It was a mess and it keeps haunting my head all the time. There won't be another edition. The Tour des Pyrénées is over," race director Pascal Baudron told Sporza, however he does apologize for the statements he issued at the time, after the riders refused to race the last stage. "The day there are no more races, they'll be able to cry and that's what's going to happen. Quite honestly, I don't think it's worth organizing a race to see all those months of effort ruined for the whims of spoilt children," he said at the time.

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"My statements were disproportionate. I would like to apologize to all the riders I have hurt," he added. "I misexpressed myself at a time when I was disappointed, frustrated and in a cold mood at the same time. Especially because the president of the race jury himself first said that the race conditions were perfect. The UCI commissioner was also of the opinion that safety was assured."

The opening day of the race saw the shocking final kilometers, with cars on the road, pedestrians, and overall lack of safety for the riders which immediately stirred much criticism, specially as the race was being broadcast. "The passage in Lourdes was very poorly organized and that was our fault. It was pure chaos. If the stage race had been definitively stopped that day, I would not have had any problems with that."

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On the second day the race was neutralized until the final climb to Hautacam, but with no sign of change, the riders outright agreed on not racing the final day of the French competition, thus ending it on the spot, much to the disliking of Baudron.

He explains the conditions in which the race had to work with: "French law states that we can temporarily privatize the course. Read: we can block the route from the race director's car to the broom wagon. The riders want the course to be 100 percent theirs. But only races such as the Tour and Paris-Roubaix are allowed to do so in France. But we don't have the financial and especially the human resources for that. On a track of 125 kilometers you need 500 signalmen at all intersections together. Just find those people."

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However the situation was quite severe and affected the image of the race. Baudron does not bring good news regarding it's possible future: "There will be no more Tour des Pyrenees in the future. If you organize something, you want to enjoy it. But now it was all misery. A major catastrophe."

"And moreover, we cannot make the race any safer than it was now. Our race will disappear. The Baloise Ladies Tour and the Women's Tour have been canceled before. It is also not certain that the Giro for women will be able to continue at the end of this month. In the long run there will be no more races left. Cycling is wonderful, but it is a very fragile sport."

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