UK's biggest cycling sportive placed on 'indefinite pause' due to 'financial considerations'
RideLondon and accompanying pro races to "not continue in current format"
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
RideLondon, the UK's biggest cycling sportive, has been placed on an "indefinite pause" due to "operational and financial considerations", it was announced on Tuesday.
The event, which at points encompassed a men's and women's pro race alongside the mass participation ride, dates back to 2013. It had already been cancelled for 2025, which the organisers said at the time was not a "pause". The event last ran in 2024, as RideLondon-Essex, with the Women's WorldTour race the RideLondon Classique. The sportive ran every year between 2013-2024, apart from 2020 and 2021 due to the Covid pandemic.
It formed one part of the London Classics series of events, along with the London Marathon and Swim Serpentine, an open-water event.
A statement from the organisers, London Marathon Events, on Tuesday afternoon read: "RideLondon, the world’s greatest festival of cycling, has been placed on indefinite pause following operational and financial considerations of the event’s future direction.
"First held in 2013 as a legacy of the London 2012 Olympic Games, RideLondon has delivered ten successful editions, inspiring more than 500,000 people to take part in one of its mass participation rides. The event has also raised more than £85 million for charity, making a lasting impact on communities and causes across the UK.
"RideLondon was originally held in partnership with Surrey County Council and ran annually until 2019. The event was paused in 2020 and 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, before returning in 2022 in collaboration with Essex County Council. The tenth and most recent edition took place in May 2024 – all editions have been delivered by London Marathon Events.
"While RideLondon will not continue in its current format, its legacy lives on in the thousands of riders it inspired and the charitable contributions it enabled.
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
"Future efforts will focus on expanding access to cycling and promoting active travel across London and beyond."
In 2024, the organisers announced that there would be no RideLondon Classique in 2025 due to date changes; the Women's WorldTour event was first held in 2016. A men's WorldTour equivalent was also held up to 2019.
When the event was originally paused in 2024, Will Norman, London's cycling and walking commissioner, said: "I am committed to working with all partners to bring back this hugely popular event in the future."
Adam is Cycling Weekly’s news editor – his greatest love is road racing but as long as he is cycling, he's happy. Before joining CW in 2021 he spent two years writing for Procycling. He's usually out and about on the roads of Bristol and its surrounds.
Before cycling took over his professional life, he covered ecclesiastical matters at the world’s largest Anglican newspaper and politics at Business Insider. Don't ask how that is related to riding bikes.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.