The UCI will try out yellow cards to make professional cycling a “safer sport”.
David Lappartient, chairman of the sport’s governing body, said the cards would be issued on a trial basis “for any offense that could pose a risk to safety” from August 1 to December 31 in men’s and women’s professional road racing women.
No sanctions will be imposed during the trial period, but from January 1, 2025, penalties ranging from fines to disqualifications and suspensions will be imposed on riders.
Two yellow cards in a one-day or stage race result in a seven-day suspension.
The yellow card trial is part of a package of measures under the UCI’s SafeR programme, which aims to improve rider safety following a number of high-profile falls this season.
Denmark’s two-time Tour de France winner Jonas Vingegaard suffered a collapsed lung and Australian cyclist Jay Vine suffered a spinal cord injury in a high-speed crash during the Itzulia Basque Country race in April.
Race leader Primoz Roglic and fellow Grand Tour winner Remco Evenepoel also abandoned the same race after dying in the crash.
“The safety of riders is a priority for the UCI, and with this in mind we have created SafeR, a structure dedicated to safety, which brings together the key stakeholders in professional cycling,” said Lappartient.
“I am confident that the measures announced will enable us to make progress towards safer sport.”
In addition to yellow cards, the UCI also wants to test restrictions on the wearing and use of earphones during races, which it says “can be both a source of distraction for riders and a physical danger”.
Adjustments to the so-called ‘three kilometer’ sprint zone rule and a simplification in calculating time differences in stages with a bunch sprint finish should also be considered.
