Next summer's 2-day NATO summit in the Hague means "motorcycle police lack the ability to oversee cycling races" for 8 months in the Netherlands, questioning the Dutch pro-bike racing calendar for 2025.

The Dutch Cycling Union (KNWU) announced the news on Wednesday that the men's and women's World Tour One-day Classic Amstel Gold Race is the biggest event at risk. Nine races over A.WWT Simac Ladies Tour safe will be held during the period from 1/1 to 31. 

The 32 members of NATO will meet at the World Forum, which will be held in the Hague on 6/24 and 25, and will require a large number of police escorts. KNWU says the cycling season in the Netherlands is set to be very adversely affected due to "the limited availability of (expert) motorcycle police officers."

The news comes after several years of being under pressure to hold the race in the Netherlands, but KNWU is determined to ensure that the calendar goes ahead, which is expected to advance and use a system of "private motorcycle traffic controllers" that can compensate for the reduction of motorcycle police officers in bicycle races. I want it.

"It is bitter and disappointing to have to conclude that the two-day NATO Summit will be the absence of motorcycle officers in the cycling race for a period of more than eight months, which is almost the entire cycling season," said Maurice Leeser, director of KNWU.

"KNWU will do everything together with the organizers to ensure that the cycling race scheduled for 2025 goes ahead. 

"In this regard, it is important to accelerate the deployment of private motorcycle traffic controllers. We hereby make an urgent appeal to the Ministries to make the necessary resources available as soon as possible.

The organizers of the Amstel Gold Race are surprised by the announcement and are hoping to find an alternative to reliably advance the largest bicycle race in the Netherlands

"Due to the organization of the NATO Summit in the Netherlands, it is difficult to get police escorts for cycling races after 2025/4." I had already heard rumors in the last few weeks that it would be possible for me to do so. The fact that this will apply from 2025/1/1 is completely new to us. We are caught off guard by this," race director Leo van Vliet told Wheeler Fritz.

Increased security and reduced police forces have raised possible solutions to run races on the circuit near Valkenburg, as in the case of the COVID-19-affected 2021 edition. But there is a problem with that too. 

"According to UCI regulations, this also requires police assistance, so it's not that easy to race on the circuit," Van Vliet said.

"We are now trying to investigate all the possibilities to continue the Amstel Gold Race on the original course. The Amstel Gold Race is the largest sporting event in the Netherlands with many exposures abroad. I believe that it is important that the Amstel Gold Race takes place, also at a high level."

Joost van Oostrum, Chairman of VOW, an organization that represents the interests of cycling organizers in the Netherlands, does not believe that the use of the circuit will alleviate the problem and take the "soul" away from bike racing. 

He wants a similar use of private motorcycle traffic controllers in the race to make up for the deficit caused by the NATO Summit.

"What I find difficult is what they simply say: without offering an alternative, we are not coming," Van Oostrum told Dutch newspaper Algemeen Dadblad. 

"The signals received by the cycling union are likely to be no effort in 2025 and not after that. 'Get ready for the circuit."If that happens, the whole soul will disappear from cycling.

"The appeal of cycling is that you really ride on the road, not 10 times the same lap. You can get real insights into the race only if you need to consider changes in road surfaces and weather conditions. You just learn it in the race between cities."