Cancelled, saved then cancelled once more: the Tour de Gatineau and Chrono féminin de la Gatineau will not happen this June

The announcement comes after Cycling Canada extends suspension of race calendar to June 14

Canadian Cycling Magazine April 5, 2020

The Tour de Gatineau (formerly known as the GP Cycliste Gatineau) had a roller-coaster year. The event is one of only two elite women’s professional road races in Canada, rated by the UCI as a 1.1 race.

Initial cancellation

In December, the tenth edition of the Grand Prix Cycliste Gatineau was cancelled due to lack of funds. The calendar for elite women’s road races in North America is small as-is, so the cancellation of the race was as huge blow for the Canadian women’s cycling community.

Thankfully, in February, a organizers rallied together and were able to secure national and provincial funding to keep the event alive. They would rename the road race and time trial to the Tour de Gatineau and Chrono féminin de la Gatineau. The new race would showcase some of the historic areas of Hull, while still climbing through the beautiful roads of Gatineau park. Organizers had big plans for the event, hoping to grow the event into a bike festival in the coming years.

COVID-19 and Cycling Canada’s announcement

In light of Cycling Canada’s recent recommendation that all events on the national calendar occurring until June 14 be postponed or canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, organizers of the Tour de Gatineau and Chrono féminin de la Gatineau have made the decision to postpone the 2020 edition of the event until further notice.

The races were scheduled to take place on June 4 and 5, so they fall within Cycling Canada’s restrictions.

“Public health remains our number one priority,” says François Demers, member of the Tour de Gatineau organizing committee. “As such all decisions regarding the re-scheduling of the event will fall within guidelines outlined by public health officials.”

“We remain optimistic that our event will once again unite some of the World’s top female cyclists in the wake of this global pandemic.”