The Tour Colombia is mentioned again in the international panorama after appearing in the provisional calendar of the UCI by 2026. Although inclusion is a key step, its realization will depend on private financing and that the organization manages to ensure the necessary resources before the end of the year.
Photo: EFE – Carlos Ortega
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After a year of absence and several doubts about its continuity, the Tour Colombia reappears on the calendar of the International Cycling Union (ICU) For season 2026. The race, which became one of the most important events on the continent, would return between the February 3 and 8 With category 2.1six stages and the goal of putting Colombia again on the map of world cycling.
The announcement appears on the provisional calendar published by the ICU, a step that, although it does not guarantee its final realization, represents a specific advance. “Latin America needs to have a reference test again,” he had pointed out months ago Rubén GaleanoPresident of the Colombian Cycling Federationwho since his arrival at office was proposed to revive the race. His plan, however, goes through a structural change: that the main financing comes from private companyand not from the State, to ensure its long -term sustainability.
The Tour Colombia was not played in 2025 for economic and logistics reasons, a hard blow for a region that lost international visibility after several years of boom. Since its creation, the event had managed to gather figures from the world squad – among them Egan Bernal, Julian Alaphilippe O Richard Careapaz– And show yourself as a height cycling showcase in South America. His return, if concretized, would imply a new opportunity to consolidate a project with greater financial stability and international projection.
However, recent history forces prudence. In 2024, the Return to San Juan It had also been initially included in the UCI calendar and was then canceled due to lack of institutional support. Therefore, the definitive confirmation of the Tour Colombia will depend on the Federation ensuring resources and logistics before the end of the year.
The 2026 calendar of the ICU, in addition, arrives with several adjustments that mark the pulse of international cycling. He Suiza Tourfor example, will go from eight to five stages, and the Maryland Cycling Classic It will cease to be a classic one day to transform into a competition in stages. New races are also added in Italy, Greece and Portugal, while the category ProSeries will grow to 59 Events.
Even so, criticism persists. The new calendar does not correct the overlapping of dates or Geographical imbalances that several runners, including Tadej Pogacarthey have questioned in recent months. Nor does the lack of careers for climbers and classicals resolve in the second half of the year, nor the low categorization of historical events such as París-Tours the Tro-Bro Léon.
In that context, the possible return of the Colombian Tour acquires a symbolic value: that of a region that seeks to recover its space in global cycling with a more solid and less dependent model. If everything goes well, in February 2026 the Andean roads will be filled again with teams of World Tour equipment, of fans vibrating in the promotions and a competition that, beyond its category, represents a rebirth.
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