Next year "will see the next step in the evolution of professional women’s cycling with the introduction of a WorldTour," according to Owen Rogers of CYCLING WEEKLY. The decision was made at the Int'l Cycling Union (UCI) Women’s Teams seminar held in Siena "after the inaugural edition of Strade Bianche last weekend." The WorldTour competition "will begin in 2016 taking the place of the World Cup." Rather than the current format of 10 one-day races, the WorldTour "will include a mix of events, including stage races and some new events, totalling 30 race days." Both La Course events, the Tour de France and la Vuelta, could be among the one day races on the program, as well as Strade Bianche, "deemed such a success last weekend." Candidates for the stage races "are the Friend’s Life Women’s Tour, Amgen Tour of California and possibly the Giro Rosa." The suggestion of two divisions of professional teams "is still out for consultation and nothing will happen before 2017." The proposal discussed at Sunday’s meeting "is for a top level of 10 teams, all of which will be required to race all the WorldTour events." UCI Women’s Cycling Coordinator Andrea Marcellini said, "The division of teams is like the men’s, but the idea behind it is completely different. The main idea is that it’s not going to be the WorldTour teams and the rest, our focus here is development." While it is on the horizon, "no date has been set for the introduction of a minimum wage, something many have called for." Marcellini: "Before we establish minimum salaries, we need to establish a healthy environment for the riders, that is the essential base for the professionalization of teams" (CYCLING WEEKLY, 3/12).
