Why aren't Great Britain competing at the 2024 European Road Championships?
There will be no British riders at the event for the third time in four years
The Great Britain Cycling Team has chosen not to field a squad at the European Road Championships this week, British Cycling has confirmed.
The event is set to take place from 11-15 September, and will be held in Limburg, in the Belgian region of Flanders.
At last year's Championships, Great Britain won the men's time trial, thanks to Josh Tarling; the squad also won a silver medal in the women's time trial through Anna Henderson, and finished fourth in the women's road race with Pfeiffer Georgi. Zoe Bäckstedt won the under-23 women's time trial.
In a statement shared with Cycling Weekly, British Cycling cited an "incredibly dense" calendar and a need for riders to rest in their rationale for not sending a team to Belgium.
"Unfortunately, GBCT [Great Britain Cycling Team] will not be fielding a team for the upcoming UEC Road European Championships this year for a number of reasons," the squad's performance director, Stephen Park, said.
"This summer's racing calendar is incredibly dense, plus the added complexity of our riders' pro team responsibilities as well as vital rest and recuperation post major events.
"We have recently had riders compete at the Olympic Games, Tour de l'Avenir and Tour of Britain, with the UCI Road World Championships coming up, giving our riders plenty of opportunities to show their abilities and fans to follow their performances."
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
The European Road Championships were first introduced to the calendar in 1995, with elite racing categories only added in 2016. In the past eight editions, there has been no elite British representation on three occasions, including as recently as 2022 and 2021.
Skipping the event this year will mean Great Britain have missed three European Road Championships in four years.
"The UEC Road European Championships is an event we value and have had great success at in the past, and we look forward to competing again in future," Park said.
The championships open on Wednesday with the time trials, in which former champions Stefan Küng (Switzerland) and Ellen van Dijk (Netherlands) are set to compete. The road races will take place at the weekend, first with the women's elite event on Saturday, followed by the men's on Sunday.
World champion Mathieu van der Poel (Netherlands), Mads Pedersen (Denmark), Jasper Philipsen (Belgium), Lorena Wiebes (Netherlands) and Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (Denmark) are all on the start lists.
Thank you for reading 20 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
Tom joined Cycling Weekly as a news and features writer in the summer of 2022, having previously contributed as a freelancer. He is the host of The TT Podcast, which covers both the men's and women's pelotons and has featured a number of prominent British riders.
An enthusiastic cyclist himself, Tom likes it most when the road goes uphill and actively seeks out double-figure gradients on his rides.
-
4 surprising Amazon Prime Day buys I use daily as a cyclist
Save on an ultrasonic cleaner, a coffee maker, a shoe drier and more during Amazon Prime Day
By Anne-Marije Rook Published
-
I joined a cycling team, and unwittingly became a doping whistleblower
When Toby Atkins moved to Italy to race his bike, the last thing he expected was to be dropped into the middle of a doping programme. Chris Marshall-Bell hears his story
By Chris Marshall-Bell Published
-
Katie Archibald set for racing return at World Championships after freak leg fracture
Scot 'thriving on the bike' having missed Olympics to recover
By Tom Davidson Published
-
Lotte Kopecky is the general classification rider to watch in 2025
The newly-crowned European TT champion could win the Tour de France Femmes next year, if given the chance
By Adam Becket Published
-
Dog walker, lifeguard, and now Olympian: Mark Stewart's unorthodox path to the Paris Olympics
The Scot received a late call-up to race the Madison, and added another job title to his long CV
By Tom Davidson Published
-
'One of sport's great stories' - Dan Bigham and the Olympic dream that almost fell apart
A training crash in Paris almost derailed the Brit's Olympic journey, but after years of dedication, he's now a silver medallist
By Tom Davidson Published
-
'It's on the up' - Olympic silver gives GB hope of return to men's sprint glory days
Promising British trio show future is bright at Paris Olympics
By Tom Davidson Published
-
Australia smash world record in men's team pursuit to set up Olympic final with GB
Aussie quartet become first in history to clock 3:40, as Netherlands better benchmark twice in men's team sprint
By Tom Davidson Published
-
A family affair: Team GB women's sprint trio make 'memories that will last forever' with gold at Paris Olympics
With their loved ones trackside, Emma Finucane, Sophie Capewell and Katy Marchant wrote their names in history
By Tom Davidson Published
-
'We've both cried during blocks': Inside the Olympic preparations of GB's track sprinting stars
Counting down the days to the sprint finals at the Olympics, Emma Finucane and Sophie Capewell tell Tom Davidson about their final push to find that decisive tenth of a second
By Tom Davidson Published