The International Cycling Union (UCI) will be using a GPS tracking system to track riders at the Rwanda World Championships to help find riders if they fall and are not spotted by race officials. All riders will be equipped with a GPS tracking device during each World Championships race, allowing full tracking of the riders' location and speed.
The system should help prevent tragedies like the one that happened to Muriel Furrer at the 2024 World Championships in Switzerland, where she fell between trees and went unnoticed by both competition officials and medical services.
"This system, managed from the UCI World Championships Control Centre, allows real-time monitoring of all riders' location and speed data, and thus immediately identifies unusual situations, such as when a rider stops unexpectedly on the course," the UCI explained. "In such cases, the rider's exact location is transmitted to the relevant parties involved in the event - the organisers, UCI commissaires, medical and security services - so that the necessary measures can be taken immediately."
The UCI tested the system at the Tour de Romandie Féminin in August, with one rider from each team equipped with the device. However, the trial did not go entirely according to plan, with five teams disqualified on the first day of the race after disputes over the use of GPS devices. Visma-Lease a Bike, Canyon-Sram Zondacrypto, EF Education-Oatly, Picnic-PostNL and Lidl-Trek were removed from the race after disagreeing with the UCI on several aspects of the system’s implementation, including safety, consent and liability.
In Rwanda, however, it is hoped that the implementation of the technology will be implemented without similar controversies, as the competitions are organized by the UCI itself and are attended by national teams, not professional teams.
