Saudi Tour 2020 start list: Mark Cavendish opens season in the Middle East
Star names confirmed for the inaugural edition

The start list for the inaugural edition of the Saudi Tour is coming together, with Mark Cavendish set to headline the race.
Slated for five stages from February 4-8, the Middle East stage race is centred around the Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh with a combination of city and desert landscapes providing the backdrop.
The announcement of a new race in Saudi Arabia proved controversial, however, with a human rights group condemning the decision, saying “cycling is increasingly associated with repression.”
Despite the criticism, the race is expected to draw some star riders who want to test their early-season form with warm temperatures and flat terrain.
Cavendish will be making his season debut in his new Bahrain-McLaren colours, while his fellow Brit and former national champion Connor Swift will also be racing.
>>> Spectator causes huge crash on stage one of Vuelta a San Juan 2020
James Shaw will be racing with his new Riwal Readynez team while fans of domestic racing will be delighted to see Ribble-Weldtite going up against some of the best.
Here is the start list for the 2020 Saudi Tour.
Saudi Tour 2020 start list
Bahrain-McLaren
CAVENDISH Mark (GBr)
BAUHAUS Phil (Ger)
BOLE Grega (Slo)
HAUSSLER Heinrich (Aus)
SIEBERG Marcel (Ger)
TRATNIK Jan (Slo)
WRIGHT Fred (GBr)
UAE Team Emirates
COSTA Rui (Por)
CONTI Valerio (Ita)
COVI Alessandro (Ita)
MARCATO Marco (Ita)
MIRZA AL-HAMMADI Yousif (UAE)
OLIVEIRA Ivo (Por)
Arkéa-Samsic
BOUHANNI Nacer Bouhanni (Fra)
GRONDIN Donavan Vincent (Fra)
JARRIER Benoit (Fra)
MCLAY Daniel (GBr)
PICHON Laurent (Fra)
SWIFT Connor (GBr)
VACHON Florian (Fra)
NTT Pro Cycling
GASPAROTTO Enrico (Sui)
BARBERO Carlos (Esp)
GEBREIGZABHIER Amanuel (Eri)
JANSE VAN RENSBURG Reinardt (RSA)
KING Benjamin (USA)
KREUZIGER Roman (Cze)
SOBRERO Matteo (Ita)
Total Direct Energie
TERPSTRA Niki (Ned)
BONIFAZIO Niccolò (Ita)
GAUDIN Damien (Fra)
PETIT Adrien (Fra)
SICARD Romain (Fra)
SOUPE Geoffrey (Fra)
VAN GESTEL Dries (Bel)
Astana
GIDICH Yevgeniy (Kaz)
BIZHIGITOV Zhandos (Kaz)
BOARO Manuele (Ita)
BOHORQUEZ SANCHEZ Hernando (Col)
MARTINELLI Davide (Ita)
NATAROV Yuriy (Kaz)
ZAKHAROV Artyom (Kaz)
B&B Hotels-Vital Concept p/b KTM
DEBUSSCHERE Jens (Bel)
BACKAERT Frederik (Bel)
DE BACKER Bert (Bel)
GAREL Adrien (Fra)
MORICE Julien (Fra)
REZA Kevin (Fra)
SLAGTER Tom-Jelte (Ned)
Circus-Wanty Gobert
DUPONT Timothy (Bel)
DE WINTER Ludwig (Bel)
DEGAND Thomas (Bel)
DOUBEY Fabien (Fra)
KREDER Wesley (Ned)
OFFREDO Yoann (Fra)
VAN MELSEN Kevin (Bel)
Burgo-BH
MADRAZO Ángel (Esp)
BOL Jetse (Ned)
FERNANDES José (Por)
FUENTES PANIEGO Angel (Esp)
GIBSON Matthew (GBr)
GUERRERO BONILLA Pablo (Esp)
SESSLER Nicolas (Bra)
Nippo Delko One Provence
NAVARDAUSKAS Ramūnas (Ltu)
DIAZ GALLEGO Jose Manuel (Esp)
HAILEMICHAEL Kinfe (Eth)
JULES Justin (Fra)
SISKEVICIUS Evaldas (Ltu)
TRARIEUX Julien (Fra)
Gazprom-RusVelo
CHERNETSKII Sergei (Rus)
BOEV Igor (Rus)
CHERKASOV Nikolai (Rus)
CIMA Damiano (Ita)
CIMA Imerio (Ita)
KULIKOV Vladislav (Rus)
KUZMIN Anton (Kaz)
Rally Cycling
DE VOS Adam (Can)
BASSETT Stephen (USA)
COTE Pier Andre (Can)
DAL-CIN Matteo (Can)
ELLSAY Nigel (Can)
MAGNER Tyler (USA)
ZUKOWSKY Nickolas (Can)
Riwal Readynez
KRON Andreas (Den)
DE KLEIJN Arvid (Ned)
HAVIK Piotr (Ned)
JENSEN August (Nor)
REINDERS Elmar (Ned)
SHAW James (GBr)
VAN DER LIJKE (Ned)
Wallonie Bruxelles
VANENDERT Jelle (Bel)
ISTA Kevyn (Bel)
PAASSCHENS Mathijs (Ned)
PLANCKAERT Baptiste (Bel)
SUTER Joel (Sui)
VALLEE Boris (Bel)
WIRTGEN Tom (Lux)
Terengganu Inc. TSG
REGUIGUI Youcef (Alg)
BATMUNKH Maral-Erdene (Mgl)
GOH Choon Huat (Sin)
HAMDAN Wan Abdul Rahman (Mas)
LAKASEK Irwandie (Mas)
MAT AMIN Mohd Shahrul (Mas)
MOREY Drew (Aus)
Bike Aid
CARSTENSEN Lucas (Ger)
BERGSTROM FRISK Erik (Swe)
DE ROOIJ Jesse (Ned)
HENDRICKS Clint (RSA)
HOLLER Nikodemus (Ger)
KANGANGI Suleiman (Ken)
WOLF Justin (Ger)
Ribble-Weldtite
LAMPIER Steve (GBr)
JONES Richard (GBr)
KYFFIN Zeb (GBr)
MOORS Oliver (GBr)
PAGE Charles (GBr)
REES Jack (GBr)
TIPPER Jacob (GBr)
Caja Rural-Seguros RGA
MALUCELLI Matteo (Ita)
AULAR SANABRIA Orluis Alberto (Ven)
BAGUES Aritz Aritz (Esp)
GARCIA SOSA Jhojan Orlando (Col)
GONZALEZ LOPEZ David (Esp)
IRISARRI RICON Jon (Esp)
NICOLAU BELTRAN Joel (Esp)
Thank you for reading 10 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Alex Ballinger is editor of BikeBiz magazine, the leading publication for the UK cycle industry, and is the former digital news editor for CyclingWeekly.com. After gaining experience in local newsrooms, national newspapers and in digital journalism, Alex found his calling in cycling, first as a reporter, then as news editor responsible for Cycling Weekly's online news output, and now as the editor of BikeBiz. Since pro cycling first captured his heart during the 2010 Tour de France (specifically the Contador-Schleck battle) Alex covered three Tours de France, multiple editions of the Tour of Britain, and the World Championships, while both writing and video presenting for Cycling Weekly. He also specialises in fitness writing, often throwing himself into the deep end to help readers improve their own power numbers. Away from the desk, Alex can be found racing time trials, riding BMX and mountain bikes, or exploring off-road on his gravel bike. He’s also an avid gamer, and can usually be found buried in an eclectic selection of books.
-
-
Dr Hutch: WLTM someone to join him on long rides
Doctor Hutch leaves sightseeing for others and dedicates his long rides to the pursuit of solitary suffering. But now he’s looking for ride-mates - A GSOH is a must
By Michael Hutchinson • Published
-
Carolin Schiff makes huge solo effort to take victory at women's Unbound Gravel 200
German off-road pro takes a massive solo victory at gravel's premiere event, Unbound
By Henry Lord • Last updated
-
Geraint Thomas 'helps a brother out', aiding Mark Cavendish's valedictory Giro d'Italia stage win
Cavendish now has one final Giro stage win. Will he get one final Tour de France equivalent in July?
By Adam Becket • Published
-
‘He’s the greatest sprinter of all time’ - Geraint Thomas pays tribute to retiring Mark Cavendish
During Monday’s second rest day at the Giro d’Italia, Cavendish announced he would retire from professional cycling at the end of the current season
By Tom Thewlis • Published
-
'I’ve lived an absolute dream' - Mark Cavendish confirms he will retire at the end of the season
'It’s the perfect time to say 2023 will be my final season' - British sprinter explains retirement decision on second Giro d’Italia rest day
By Tom Thewlis • Published
-
Tweets of the week: Special guests at the Giro, Carthy does a wizard impression and Cavendish gets a new sprint train
Taking a look through the best of cycling social media in the last week
By Tom Thewlis • Published
-
Mark Cavendish ‘hungry’ to land first win of the season at Giro d’Italia
British rider is one of several options for Astana at Italian Grand Tour as they go in search of stage wins
By Tom Thewlis • Published
-
Complete Giro d'Italia 2023 start list: Who is still in the Grand Tour three days in?
There has not been one abandonment so far in this year's Giro, here's the complete start list
By Adam Becket • Last updated
-
Mark Cavendish takes 'positives' from record-breaking podium at Scheldeprijs
The Astana-Qazaqstan rider says he will "normally" go to the Giro d'Italia next month
By Adam Becket • Published
-
Mark Cavendish takes third at Scheldeprijs, in best result for Astana Qazaqstan
Jasper Philipsen of Alpecin-Deceuninck took the win, with DSM’s Sam Welsford grabbing second
By Tom Thewlis • Published