A local government debt crisis across China is forcing severe spending cuts, and the Tour of Guangxi could be on the chopping block
It appears that the continuation of the Tour of Guangxi is in doubt beyond 2027, as the race that has concluded the men’s WorldTour season for a decade could lose its provincial government funding amid wider public spending cuts in China. Meanwhile, this year’s women’s Tour of Guangxi one-day race, part of the WorldTour since 2018, has been cancelled.
Multiple sources have confirmed to Escape that Wanda Sports China, the company which organises the race, has a contract in place with the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region for this year and next. However, financial difficulties have forced the cancellation of the Tour of Guangxi women’s one day race this year. The one-day WorldTour event, which was due to be held on October 18, has already been removed from the UCI calendar.
Last year’s winners of the Tours of Guangxi were Jayco-AlUla’s Paul Double and Lidl-Trek’s Anna Henderson. 2026 will see the race’s seventh edition, ten years after it was launched. The race went through a three-year hiatus during the COVID pandemic, but now it could be closing its doors altogether.
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Tour of Guangxi Race Director Olivier Senn has confirmed to Escape Collective that the six-day men’s stage race will go ahead in 2026 and 2027 as per the contract between Wanda Sports China and the provincial government; and negotiations are ongoing to extend the deal. However, as things stand, there are no plans in place to run the women’s race either this year or next, with the provincial government immediately cutting the women’s race to save costs. “Despite Wanda Sports China trying everything they could to save the women’s race at least for 2026, the government decided to withdraw the support,” added Senn.
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