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UCI green lights disc brakes for road races

On Tuesday, the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) and the World Federation of the Sporting Goods Industry (WFSGI) announced that disc brakes would be permitted in road races this August.

2015 Giant Defy Advanced SL front disc brake
2015 Giant Defy Advanced SL front disc brake
John Degenkolb of Giant-Alpecin won the 2015 edition of Paris-Roubaix on a 2014 model of the Giant Defy. The 2015 model, shown here, has disc brakes. With the UCI’s announcement that professional teams could test disc-brake-equipped road bikes in August and September 2015 and in 2016, Degenkolb might have the opportunity defended his title on a machine with rotors.

On Tuesday, the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) and the World Federation of the Sporting Goods Industry (WFSGI) announced that disc brakes would be permitted in road races this August.

Professional teams are able to use road bikes equipped with disc brakes in two events of their choice in August and September. These event are considered test events. The trials will continue into the 2016 season. In a statement, the UCI said that “if the experience is satisfactory, disc brakes will be officially introduced to the UCI WorldTour in 2017.”

“Although disc brakes have been used for around a decade in mountain biking and for the last two years in cyclocross, their introduction to road cycling must be carefully studied in collaboration with all those who are directly concerned. That includes riders, teams and manufacturers,” UCI president Brian Cookson said. “This step is part of the UCI’s desire to encourage innovation in order to ensure cycling is even more attractive for spectators, riders, bike users and broadcasters.”

WFSGI secretary general Robbert de Kock welcomed the development. “The industry is delighted by this news and also thanks the UCI for the very positive collaboration,” he said. “This decision will further develop innovation and create new possibilities for the bicycle industry as well as additional performance for the riders. There is still some fine tuning to do on detailed requirements for the procedure, but it is very exciting to finally have reached this decision. The remaining open topics such as neutral race support or the UCI and teams protocol will be tackled soon.”

WorldTour events in August that could see pros riding bikes equipped with disc brakes include the Vuelta a España, the Tour de Pologne and the Eneco Tour. Canada hosts two WorldTour events in September: the Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec on Sept. 11 and the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal two days later.