Just when you thought the season was over...

...a new race has been added. This will be the 2nd race that China will host:

Season-ending Tour of Hangzhou added to WorldTour calendar

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/season-ending-tour-of-hangzhou-added-to-worldtour-calendar)

The UCI has opened the door for an additional Chinese stage race to the WorldTour calendar at a meeting of the Professional Cycling Council (PCC) in Geneva on Friday, after the Tour of Hanghzou was pencilled in to take place on October 17-21 of this year.

The new race would take place immediately after the Tour of Beijing, which is already fixed for October 10-14. It would thus become the final event on the WorldTour calendar, as the Tour of Lombardy has already been shifted from its traditional October date to September 29.

The Tour of Hanghzhou will be confirmed on the calendar once the Licence Commission approves its application for a UCI WorldTour licence. While that process should prove a formality, it remains to be seen how the 18 WorldTour teams and their riders will respond to the addition of another five days of racing in China at the tail end of the season.

“It is a natural step for cycling which is currently enjoying a period of huge growth worldwide,” UCI president Pat McQuaid said in a statement issued by the governing body late on Friday afternoon. “This will generate great visibility for teams and riders and can be expected to give a big boost to cycling. The injection of funding directly benefits the sport with financial returns from the new races re-invested into cycling and also profiting teams and other stakeholders down the line.

“It is no secret that success breeds success and the current boom in cycling is good news for cyclists and cycling lovers across the board. We are very pleased with today’s decision which comes as part of UCI’s ongoing sustainable development of the sport.”

The UCI did not name the race organiser in the press release, but its own organising entity GCP (Global Cycling Promotion) is already responsible for the Tour of Beijing.

The addition of the Tour of Hanghzou brings to 28 the number of events on the WorldTour calendar, and is the fifth to be held outside of Europe, alongside the Tour Down Under, GP de Montréal, GP de Québec and Tour of Beijing.

Saxo Bank to lose WorldTour slot?

During its two-day gathering in Geneva, the UCI also confirmed that it will ask the Licence Commission to rule on whether Saxo Bank should retain its place in the WorldTour following the suspension of Alberto Contador. “If the points obtained by Alberto Contador, representing approximately 68 percent of the Saxo Bank-Sungard team's total points, are disregarded, his team would no longer be considered to fulfil the sporting criterion required for the UCI WorldTour,” read the UCI statement.

Gesink Update

Successful surgery for Gesink

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/successful-surgery-for-gesink)

Robert Gesink has undergone successful surgery on his fractured right femur. The Rabobank rider suffered the serious injury in a training crash on Sunday.

The Rabobank rider had a pin installed in his leg on Sunday night at the Meander Medical Center in Amersfoort in the Netherlands. He will remain in hospital a few days, and must have ten days of absolute rest, before starting rehabilitation.

Rabobank sport director Erik Breukink said that Gesink did not remember how the crash happened.

The crash is another blow for the 26-year old after a difficult 12 months. His father died in October 2010 as the result of a cycling accident. Gesink started well in the season, winning two stages in the Tour of Oman en route to overall victory. A crash at the Tour de France left him with back and hip injuries and he finished the race 33rd overall. He recently he finished second in the GP de Quebec, and was looking forward to repeating his two-time win in the Giro dell'Emilia. Now his season is over and he faces a winter of rehabilitation and physiotherapy.

Gesink's place on the Worlds road team will be taken by Rabobank teammate Steve Kruijswijk.

In another team change, Dominique Rollin (FDJ) has withdrawn from the Canadian team. He has not recovered from injuries suffered in a crash at the GP de Montreal. His place on the road race will be taken by Michael Barry of Team Sky.

No Worlds Championship for Andy Schleck

Andy Schleck confirms he will miss the Worlds Championships

(http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/andy-schleck-confirms-he-will-miss-the-worlds-championships)

Andy Schleck has confirmed that he will not ride alongside his brother Frank at the World Championship road race next week in Copenhagen. The Tour de France runner-up has been taken out of the Luxembourg six-man roster initially published on the federation's website.

"I'm not going to the world's because of my tooth problem. Healing slower than expected," the younger Schleck tweeted on Friday.

Schleck has been suffering from an infection of a wisdom tooth for several weeks, making the removal of the tooth necessary. The surgery has already forced him miss the GP de Quebec and the GP de Montreal race in Canada.

It is unclear if Andy will race again this season.

The Luxembourg federation has decided not to replace Andy in the line-up, as the only rider who could have possibly taken his place, Bob Jungels, is still an Under 23 rider. The Luxembourg team will thus enter the road race with only five instead of six riders: Fränk Schleck, Jempy Drucker, Christian Poos, Laurent Didier and Ben Gastauer.