Road Cycling World Championships cancelled

The Swiss government announced that events of more than 1,000 people would be allowed starting October 1. Keystone / Lefteris Pitarakis

The sports event became the latest large-scale event to throw in the towel after the government recently decided to extend coronavirus restrictions.

“We are sad and disappointed. We have worked hard for more than two years to deliver a magnificent event on an extraordinary circuit”, wrote the organisers of the Road World Championships in a press releaseExternal link.

The event was scheduled to take place from September 20-27 in Aigle and Martigny, between the western Swiss cantons of Vaud and Valais. 

The number of people attending events has been restricted since February 28. This rule was effective until the end of this month but on Wednesday the government announced that major events with more than 1,000 people will only be allowed against starting on October 1.

Another factor influencing the decision according to the organising committee was the number of countries subject to quarantine when entering Switzerland. It wrote that this would prevent many of the 1,200 riders from 90 countries from participating in the event.

This is also expected to have a significant economic impact on the host region. The director of the Valais hotel association reported that it will lose around 2,500 hotel bookings as a result of the cancellation.