Important news regarding the stage race that introduced Tadej Pogacar to the general public and was won last year by Paul Seixas, much more than a simple emerging cycling star. We are talking about the Tour de l'Avenir. Contested since 2007 by national teams, the event will open to professional development teams.

A-Velo, the event organizer, has officially requested the International Cycling Union (UCI) to register the race in the 2.2U class of the international calendar starting from the 2026 edition, which will take place from August 19 to 27.

"This evolution of participation rules for the Tour de l'Avenir fully aligns with the current reality of high-level cycling, which has seen, following the professional cycling reform initiated by the UCI, teams progressively investing in welcoming and training (very) young riders by creating development groups, true incubators of the UCI WorldTour ecosystem," the organization explains.

The Tour de l'Avenir thus confirms its vocation as a talent forge on a global scale, whether within a national team or a professional team. Participation of 10 development teams is planned, namely Team Bahrain Victorious Development Team, Development Team Picnic PostNL, EF Pro Cycling Aevolo, INEOS Grenadiers Racing Academy, Lidl-Trek Future Racing, Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe Rookies, Soudal Quick-Step Pro Cycling Team Devo Team, Tudor Pro Cycling Team U23, Team Visma | Lease a Bike Development Team, UAE Team Emirates Gen-Z.

All associations have already confirmed their participation in the race. The route for the 2026 edition, certainly demanding and selective as tradition dictates, will be revealed in the coming months, as will the list of national teams participating in the event. The Tour de l'Avenir is organized by A-Velo with the support of the Tour de France.