Why didn’t those 5 teams want to install a GPS tracker?

What a weird day. In what should have been an exciting Stage 1 of the Tour de Romandie Féminin, the entire event was overshadowed by controversy before the race even began. Five teams (originally thought to be six) were disqualified before they even started. Why?

The governing body said Canyon–Sram Zondacrypto, EF Education–Oatly, Lidl–Trek, Team Picnic PostNL, and Team Visma–Lease a Bike were excluded from the three-stage Women’s WorldTour race for refusing to comply with the rules to test GPS trackers for a new safety system.

In a release, the UCI said: “The UCI regrets that certain teams have objected to the test by not nominating a rider to carry the tracking device and have therewith opted to be excluded from the Tour de Romandie Féminin. In view of this situation, the UCI shall consider if other measures are warranted in accordance with the UCI Regulations.”

What. A. Day.

The GPS units, which weigh about 63 g, were meant to assist the UCI in refining its tracking software and “establish protocols to provide real-time data to race control, medical teams and UCI Commissaires.” Each team had to assign one rider to carry the device, with the UCI saying it shared the test details with all squads last week.

But that’s where the conflict began. Risking disqualification means losing UCI points — and possibly facing further discipline. So what were those five teams taking a stand for? Safety is a priority for the riders and the squads that support them, but the optics of this dispute are not great for the UCI.

In a joint statement, the five excluded teams said:

“Earlier this week, all affected teams sent formal letters to the UCI expressing support for rider safety but raising serious concerns about the unilateral imposition of a GPS tracking device to just one of the riders per team.”

The statement added that no teams would “select a rider ourselves, nor install, remove, or maintain the device.” They argued that doing so could make a rider or mechanic liable if something went wrong.

Why the trackers are important

The reference to liability recalls the death of Swiss rider Muriel Furrer, who crashed during the junior women’s road race at the 2024 world championships in Zurich and lay undiscovered in a forest for more than 90 minutes before help arrived. At the worlds, race radios aren’t permitted — let alone GPS devices. That will change at the 2025 championships in Rwanda, where GPS trackers will be allowed.

The teams said the UCI or its partner was free to select a rider and install the device “at their own liability” if they believed they had the right to do so.

They added that they had already been cooperating on safety measures and had “a proven and collaborative safety tracking system” in place — one “tested successfully in other major races” and “fully operational for the whole peloton” — and had even offered it to the UCI. Instead, they argued, the governing body chose to impose its own system “without clear consent,” threaten disqualification, and exclude them from the race “for not selecting a rider ourselves,” with the reason for not nominating one still “unknown and unanswered.”

According to the teams, despite repeated requests over the past two days, UCI commissaires could not point to a specific rule requiring them to “discriminate one rider against other riders in terms of obligations,” other than citing an email from the teams’ union. They called the measure discriminatory, said it undermined riders’ rights, and argued it ran counter to the UCI’s commitment to dialogue. “We are always at the forefront to make cycling a safer sport,” they said, “but it should be achieved through collaboration, not coercion.”

This is not the first time the UCI’s approach to rider safety has made headlines. But Friday’s incident has cast fresh doubt on whether the governing body truly prioritizes the welfare of pro cyclists — or is simply engaging in window dressing.

You know what sucks for us Canucks? Lidl–Trek’s Isabella Holmgren and EF Education–Oatly’s Magdeleine Vallières, who would relish the hills of Switzerland, aren’t racing. Stage 1—a short but tough uphill time trial that would have suited the multi-discipline star from Oro-Medonte, Ont., and the Sherbrooke climber—went on without them.

Friday was not a good day for pro bike racing.