After the Mumbai Cyclothon, another Indian race, the Tour De Delhi is making its first appearance this year on the UCI Asia Tour calendar: proof, if any were needed, that our sport is currently experiencing a phase of robust development in this country. The UCI is bound to welcome this altogether positive trend.

The globalisation of road cycling is in fact one of the strategic priorities of our Federation and the success of these events will certainly help to enhance the popularity of this discipline with an increasingly broad audience.

India is therefore becoming nothing less than the new frontier of cycling and I want to convey at the outset my sincere appreciation to the organisers of this event and to the political and sporting authorities which have supported them for having chosen to embark upon this extraordinary adventure at our side.

Together, we wish to build a movement with robust structural bases capable of giving the finest Indian riders a real opportunity for growth which will, in the not too distant future, enable them to measure their prowess against athletes from other countries in the most prestigious events.

The Tour De Delhi, which we are about to follow, will also be a dress rehearsal for the cycling races of the Commonwealth Games: in that perspective, the race will therefore take on even greater value and I feel convinced that the quality of the sporting event which we are about to follow will be outstanding.

May I end by wishing, as usual, good luck to each and every rider and congratulating everyone involved in staging this event, especially the sponsors and volunteers whose contribution has been vital. Their enthusiasm and their passion for cycling, combined with the competence of the organisers, are, in the UCI’s eyes, the finest guarantee of the success of this race which will, I feel certain, represent another step forward into the radiant future of Indian cycling.

Pat McQuaid
UCI President