Third stage of Tour of Holland ends in chaos: riders stop due to unsafe conditions, race canceled
CyclingFriday, 17 October 2025 at 15:48
The third stage of the Tour of Holland went into complete chaos on Friday. The peloton stopped cycling after unsafe conditions were reported. The race was neutralized and discussions took place between team leaders, riders, and the jury. It was unclear whether the race would continue at all, but in the end, it was canceled.
Friday was supposed to be the queen stage of the Tour of Holland. The organizers had laid out a challenging 149-kilometer course between the start in Sittard and the finish in Watersley, which was supposed to be up and down all day. Men who came to the Netherlands with ambitions for the overall victory would have to strike here.
However, that was not to be. After the start in Sittard, it did not take long before the peloton had to stop, as we can see from Thijs Zonneveld's X account. This was apparently on their own initiative, after something unsafe had happened. At that point, it was clear that the race had been neutralized and that discussions would take place about how to proceed.
Read on below the tweet!
Stage canceled after "the safety of the riders could not be guaranteed"
Not much later, it became clear that the stage had been canceled and that there would be no more racing. “Stage canceled in consultation with riders and teams. Riders are riding back to the start in neutralized conditions,” Zonneveld reported. This meant that the queen stage ended in quite an anticlimax.
The owner of BEAT Cycling also announced the reason for canceling the race. “The problem is that the safety of the riders cannot be guaranteed. There are several cars on the course. The organization apologizes to the riders,” he said.
Zonneveld provided further context. “The Tour of Holland is held without police escort, but with volunteers who stop cars. Several cars ignored the stop signs of volunteer traffic controllers and simply drove onto the course,” said the Dutchman, explaining the danger.
Read on below the tweet!
Organization issues statement: "Car decided to ignore stop sign of motorcycle escorts"
A statement was then released by the organization. “On the fourth day of the NIBC Tour of Holland, the race was stopped in the stage that runs through Limburg. The race started on time at the Tom Dumoulin Bike Park, and after less than an hour, the riders indicated that they wanted to abandon the race for safety reasons,” it said.
“The organization supports the decision of the riders and teams and has therefore decided to end the race for today, October 17.” The organization confirmed Zonneveld’s account. “After a tumultuous neutralization, there was an oncoming car that, after being stopped twice, still decided to ignore the stop sign of the motorcycle escorts.”
The driver's decision had major consequences. “As a result, the riders refused to continue racing. The organization then decided to respect the wishes of the riders and team leaders,” the statement read.
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