A top official says they have ambitious plans of making the UAE Tour ‘one of the very best races’ on the UCI calendar following the merger of the Abu Dhabi Tour and Dubai Tour.
The UAE Tour was announced on Wednesday in Abu Dhabi after a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between Abu Dhabi Sports Council and Dubai Sports Council.
Ever since the Dubai Tour and Abu Dhabi Tour were launched in 2014 and 2015 respectively, the races have gone from strength to strength and become pinnacle events on the UAE sporting calendar.
Mark Cavendish and Marcel Kittel are among the high-profile names to have travelled to the Emirate in recent years. And Aref Al Awani, general secretary of Abu Dhabi Sports Council, is convinced they are ready for the challenge of making the UAE Tour as one of the elite races on the UCI World Tour schedule.
“Yes, that is what we want to do,” he told Sport360. “We know the UCI calendar is very strong and it has the three Grand Tour races – Tour de France, Giro d’Italia and Vuelta a Espana. They are all very big races on the calendar that attracts the best riders.
“Our aim is to make the UAE Tour one of the best races after those Tour races on the World Tour calendar. We want this race to be very attractive for all the riders and make it the most important race on the calendar so that all the big names will continue coming to the country.”
The inaugural race is set to be held in February 2019 over seven days with the initial route consisting of seven stages. Al Awani is hopeful that each of the UAE’s seven emirates will host a stage or be a passing point.
“We are hoping that all the seven Emirates will have a stage whether that is hosting a stage or seeing the riders go past,” said Al Awani, who said they will submit the plans including the name change to the UCI. “We want the the riders to pass most of the towns. For instance, the last time we hosted the Abu Dhabi Tour, we passed eight towns in the capital, so this is the same aim for the UAE Tour.
“We want to elevate the race by becoming a seven stage race, representing the seven emirates in the country. The number 7 is very special for us and it will be a race for everybody.”
The UAE are no strangers to hosting elite competitions with the Formula One, Dubai World Cup and Rugby Sevens among the most high-profile events.
And Al Awani says the UAE Tour will put the country on the sporting map and enhance their image of being a major sporting hub.
“Sport has been one of the strongest tourism tools for the UAE and sport is escalating every year,” he added. “It’s very attractive and lucrative for us. Developing this race and making sure it’s held across the country is very important to us as it widens the scope.
“For sure, it will help the UAE overall and most importantly will benefit the community in spreading the awareness of cycling and raising the profile of the sport.”
