“There will be no switch between the Giro and the Vuelta” – RCS refuse to even consider Tadej Pogacar's proposed overhaul to Grand Tour scheduling

The CEO of RCS Sport, Paolo Bellino, has firmly dismissed the idea of swapping the dates of the Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a Espana, stating that the Italian Grand Tour will not move from its traditional May slot.

Speaking to Cycling News, Bellino made clear that the proposal raised this week by Tadej Pogacar is not up for consideration.

“We're not even going to think about the idea. The Giro d'Italia has a traditional date in May and we don't want to change it. Every Grand Tour has its own history and importance, also thanks to its date in the calendar. The Giro has been held in May for 108 times apart from the COVID-19 pandemic which was a unique moment as we all worked to save the cycling season,” Bellino said.

“I'd love to change the Giro dates but only by a week. I'd like to see the Giro embrace the June 2 Italian national holiday. It'd also mean we climb into the high mountains a week or so later and some years that can make a big difference for the weather. But that's the only date change I want to make,” he continued. “There will be no switch between the Giro and the Vuelta.”

Bellino’s comments follow a notable run of public statements on the subject. Earlier this week, Pogacar suggested that the calendar structure could be improved.

Pogacar said: “I always say that if the Giro d’Italia and La Vuelta were swapped it would be much better, because of the weather conditions and because it would allow more riders to take part.”

His remarks received immediate endorsement from the president of the riders’ union, Adam Hansen, who wrote on X: “I've said this over the past years during the PCC and various other meetings. I was laughed at, but obviously they've never ridden the Giro in freezing rain and snow, or the Vuelta in scorching heat. That is the biggest problem in cycling, the tradition is holding the sport back.”

With Pogacar raising the issue, Hansen endorsing it, and Bellino rejecting it, the discussion around Grand Tour sequencing has quickly accelerated into one of the week’s most prominent talking points.

The UCI continues to explore broader calendar reforms, but Bellino reiterated that the Giro’s identity — and its place in May — remains non-negotiable from RCS’s perspective.