The UCI committee met past week to discuss changes, proposals and new rules for the 2026 season. While some positive news like promotion of the Women's version of Dwars door Vlaanderen to WorldTour (previously 1.Pro) and increase of funds were confirmed, one new rule has caused quite a commotion in the cycling echelons.
According to the information provided, UCI will now enforce a mandatory minimum width of handlebars in road races and cyclo-crosses. There is nothing said about this new rule extending only to men, which means women will need to gear up too. And that is a controversial, if not discriminating rule to the ladies.
Measured from the two outermost points, handlebars must be at least 40 centimetres wide from 1 January 2026, with a minimum internal width of 32 centimetres from brake lever to brake lever. In the women's peloton, this could cause difficulties: due to the body shape of women, they often use narrower handlebars.
Karl Lima, team manager at the Norwegian Continental formation Coop - Repsol, immediately shared his disconcern about the news that would negatively impact the riders of his team. "All of our thirteen riders race with handlebars that are narrower than 40 centimeters," he wrote on X.
Niamh Fisher-Black demonstrated absurdity of this ruling on her social media. The New Zealand pocket climber from Lidl-Trek shared a photo on Instagram: with a measuring tape she shows that she is barely thirty centimetres from shoulder to shoulder. The change would force the older sister of male pro Finn Fisher-Black to ride in a highly uncomfortable position.
Under the new UCI regulation, Fisher-Black would in future have to race with handlebars that are at least four inches wider than the natural position of her shoulders and arms. An anonymous source described the regulation to Bikeradar as "hugely discriminatory against women and smaller men". Cervélo, bike provider of Visma | Lease a Bike informs that 14/18 women on the Dutch team will have to change their handlebars.
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- They do this but literally let cars on courses to run over riders.mij07-11-2026
- Looking at that photo she appears to be several feet from her. I’m not sure how that impeded brands sprint.mij07-11-2026
- I hope you are wrong but I suspect you will be proved correct. It might do something for Scottish tourism - although due to logistics the route skips the most spectacular parts of Scotland. It will bring in short term money no doubt, but will cycling overall in the U,K benifit? I doubt it. Even at £2 a litre the bits love thei cars,Cyclingsbestfan07-11-2026
- Lucky to not get disqualified
leedorney07-11-2026 - The road from Holyrood to Edinburgh Castle is a nice steady climb of just over a mile that is cobbled in many parts. (Very slippery if wet!) If the teams are going by one by one that will give fans an even better view of the riders up close than the castle esplanade.Cyclingsbestfan07-11-2026
- wtf dudemij07-11-2026
- big rival … ridiculous.Ketterechts07-11-2026
- It would be great if the World Champion's jersey could be rotated among McNulty, Simmons, and Jorgenson. They threaded the needle perfectly. If each hadn't done exactly what he did, exactly when he did it, the race would have gone to one of the more heralded superstars. That said, how nice that this humble and hardworking guy gets his moment in the sun.
MarkFour07-11-2026 - 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
- Hmmm, you seem to have a very convenient black and white view of things. Perhaps you haven’t been around much to discover how complex problems can become over time with people who know how to control, manipulate (or worse) others so gradually or subtly that you arrive at an irresolvable situation before you realise. This is how many inconveniences get introduced to the young, naïve, passionate or “desperate”, knowing they are not armed, protected or strong enough to defend themselves once it’s too late. Why do you think omerta culture is so widespread, why do you think so many people continue to go through so many awful things in life that others can’t understand anyone getting into? Life may be far more jolly for you but you would do well to understand (or reflect more on) the real world to refrain from being so quick to criticise those in a hard spot that may have genuine reason for speaking out.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
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