Tom Pidcock, Juan Ayuso and Jakobsen's World Tour debut for Visma - Tour of Guangxi confirms big names
CyclingWednesday, 30 September 2026 at 11:55
The Tour of Guangxi will once again be the final World Tour event of the season, and will wrap up competition at the highest level in mid-November. The Chinese race has confirmed the presence of Tom Pidcock, Juan Ayuso and other big names.
The race will take place from the 13th to 18th of October and, ever since its creation back in 2017, it has become one of the final high-level races of the year. Providing lots of valuable UCI points at a time of year where many have brought their season to an ending, it proves to be a very attractive option for the lower-level teams to put a lot of focus on.
But on the opposite side of the spectrum are the riders looking to take a final big win to end their season with. The Chinese race is a World Tour event, and provides riders with a strong opportunity to take a win at the highest level.
In 2025 it was Paul Double who took the overall win, grabbing the GC following victory on the queen stage. Previous winners of the race include Tim Wellens, Enrric Mas and Lennert van Eetvelt.
Paul Double won the Tour of Guangxi in 2025
Tom Pidcock and Juan Ayuso to fight for GC win
Will a new rider add his name to the race's palmarès this year? That could well be, as the race organizers announced several star names to be confirmed at the start in two weeks. Tom Pidcock, leader of Pinarello - Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team, is perhaps going to be the biggest name at the start.
Juan Ayuso of Lidl-Trek is another big name, looking to end his debut season with the German team on a high, after not having been able to take the big wins that looked to be quite possible after he beat Paul Seixas at the Volta ao Algarve back in February.
Defending champion Paul Double has also been confirmed at the start, looking to defend his title for a Team Jayco AlUla that has recently had its leaders in great form at the World Championships.
Read also
Fabio Jakobsen to race Guangxi with Visma
After signing with Team Visma | Lease a Bike back in August, Fabio Jakobsen has been having a period of adaptation to the Dutch team. He has raced some non-professional events, even taking his first win with the 'bees' in the meantime at the GP Dr. Eugeen Roggeman. Jakobsen will make his debut with the team this weekend professionally at the Sparkassen Münsterland Giro, and the plenty flat stages in Guangxi will be a great opportunity to return to competitive form.
The Chinese race organizers have also confirmed the participation of Olav Kooij, the sprinter who has won this year's first bunch sprint at the Tour de France - coming as leader of Decathlon CMA CGM Team.
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A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
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Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
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- It's not a great translation, but I think what he's saying is that Remco is exceptional when in training he can imagine the roar of the crowds as he wins, as he has said himself. With WVA as co-leader, he could not mentally prepare like that.Hills3330-09-2026
- Absolutely!Lozza30-09-2026
- Agreed. He has to say something controversial to justify his pay cheque.Cyclingsbestfan30-09-2026
- Why wouldn't your team boss congratulate you? It's a big deal to have a world champion on your team.Cyclingsbestfan30-09-2026
- As a World Tour team, surely Picnic Post NL will get an automatic invite to any and all grand tours and World Tour races regardless of their position in the pecking order of UCI points at the end of this season.Lozza30-09-2026
- Yes, this time I agree with you... the best team was the american team. Chapeau to them.PogiSloFans30-09-2026
- Yes, I bow to Pogi, with respect. You bow to your orange orangutan maga president... the most hated person in the world.PogiSloFans30-09-2026
- OK, I agree, Lance Armstrong was a jerk and the biggest doper in the history of any sports. He's also wrong about UAE and Gianetti. The experts and trainers in UAE are amoung the best in the world. We can all see what they did with Pogi... they made him a "killing machine"... who dominates cycling with unstoppable ruthless precision. McNulty can also be happy, he became the WC because of UAE, they are the ones that got him to this level, not the USA team. As for Armstrong, like I said, he's the No.1 doper... but: His Livestrong Foundation raised about $500 million for cancer-related programs and services during Lance Armstrong's career. That money came from many sources, individual donors, corporate partners, merchandise, events, and other fundraising. Armstrong personally donated approximately $7 million to the foundation. Livestrong described the Armstrong family as its largest donor. Lance did not receive a salary as chairman of the foundation. PS: How many of you Armstrong haters donated for cancer? Every year, on World Cancer Day, February 4th, my wife and I donate 200€ for cancer patients.PogiSloFans30-09-2026
- I can see you are also hurting on the inside, just like 3/4 of all americans. Your president and his maga voters are cheaters. It aint my fault.PogiSloFans30-09-2026
- I made that comment and was being half facetious. Ciccone is complaining that people let him just ride and didnt work to catch him. well, maybe their legs were dead and they couldn’t work.mij30-09-2026
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