Junior cyclists racing on the road in Britain next season will ride on unrestricted gears as British Cycling has decided to scrap "junior gears". Cycling Ireland announced the same move months ago. Both the British and Irish national governing bodies have acted following research on the matter over a number of years by the UCI.
However, some of the top European cycling nations have decided to stick with junior gears. They say they want to allow junior riders develop without being "overloaded" and, they claim, to avoid young riders dropping out of road racing during their junior years.
British Cycling announced today junior gears were scrapped from January 1st following a decision by its road commission and technical commission. It said while such changes were usually introduced from March 1st, the gearing changes would apply immediately.
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"Adopting the change on this date will prevent riders from needing to make changes to equipment mid-season, and will also remove the requirement for commissaires and officials to perform junior gear checks at events. No changes have been made to gearing regulations for youth categories," British Cycling said.
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The UCI has moved to lift junior gear restrictions from the start of 2023, meaning juniors can ride whatever gears they wish next season. Cycling Ireland, and now British Cycling, have followed that example.
However, both the Dutch and the Belgian federations have come to a joint agreement to retain junior gears for national and regional races. It means any Irish juniors racing abroad next year – save for UCI-ranked races – in Belgium or the Netherlands will need to switch back to junior gears.
“Safety in the peloton is very important to us,” the Dutch cycling federation said in a statement. “This also includes the ability for youth riders to develop without their growing bodies being overloaded. In addition, it is possible that by releasing the resisting speeds in competitions for juniors will be higher, which can lead to dangerous situations. Both cases can lead to an increased ‘drop-out’ among youth cyclists.
“Since many Dutch cycling athletes also compete in Belgium, and vice versa, the KWBW and KNWU have decided to apply the same rules regarding the resistance for juniors. In the coming year, the Belgian cycling federation will conduct a thorough study into the possible adjustment and tuning of the various gears. The KNWU will join the evaluation and reconsider the decision regarding the maximum resistance before 2024."
