Visma | Lease a Bike and UAE bring riders back from injury at Tour of Guangxi; start list stronger than ever

The Tour of Guangxi comes after a long and grueling season, which is why it’s often seen as a “must-attend” event. Riders who are leaving a team or aren’t among the very best are still allowed to head all the way to China at the end of the year. Still, for many riders, the race is often a chance to secure one last result or put themselves in the spotlight for a new contract...

There are a lot of teams on the start list, with some interesting names. Visma | Lease a Bike immediately catches the eye, with Fabio Jakobsen on the roster. The Dutch rider made his official debut in yellow and black at the Sparkassen Münsterland Giro , finishing 15th, following his departure from Picnic PostNL this summer. In Guangxi, Jakobsen will have a few opportunities to go for a sprint.

Louis Barré is another exciting name on the start list, as the Frenchman was in such good form over the summer but was set back by a broken wrist. He recovered in time for the Tour of Lombardy, where he did a great job setting up the team leaders for their attacks. In China, he—just like Tijmen Graat—will have the chance to ride for himself.

UAE Emirates-XRG also features an interesting rider in Marc Soler. The Spaniard crashed on Day 2 of the Giro d'Italia and, due to a broken pelvis, was unable to race again this season. He then suffered broken ribs in August following a crash during training. In China, Soler will have the chance to log some much-needed kilometers.

We’re seeing similar situations with other teams as well. For example, Neilson Powless has only been fully competing in his 2026 season with EF Education-EasyPost for a few weeks, following a knee injury in February.

Davide Formolo is having a terrible year at Movistar due to a tendon injury. After a string of withdrawals, he might be able to build some confidence in China for the coming year, for which he doesn’t yet have a team.

Another name? Torstein Træen is back in action for the first time since his crash in the Tour de France. The Norwegian suffered broken ribs and a concussion there. He, too, will likely still have some energy left, and will be looking to get off to a good start for the long winter training season ahead.

If we look beyond the riders who are returning or just looking to get back into the swing of things, there are also a whole lot of strong teams at the start. Defending champion Paul Double (Jayco AlUla) will have his work cut out for him defending his title. With Powless (EF), Juan Ayuso (Lidl-Trek), Tom Pidcock (Pinarello-Q36.5), Kévin Vauquelin (Netcompany INEOS), and Jarno Widar (Lotto-Intermarché), there are some big names on the roster.

The bunch sprints will also be exciting, as Jakobsen faces stiff competition from riders including Olav Kooij (with a full sprint train at Decathlon CMA CGM), Arvid De Kleijn (Tudor), Paul Magnier (Soudal Quick-Step), Jordi Meeus (Red Bull), Kaden Groves (Alpecin-Premier Tech), and Matteo Moschetti (Pinarello).