Cyclists competing in the 2024 Taiwan KOM Challenge were forced to halt racing and retreat back to their automobiles after the event was canceled mid-race due to landslide warnings on Friday 25 October.

The annual epic hillclimb with 3275 meters of vertical ascent started at 05:00 in adverse stormy weather conditions. After only 6 kilometers of racing riders and officials noticed rockfalls as they advanced from the Taiwanese coast into high mountains.

At 05:50 Yilan County issued a yellow-level “Landslide and Large-scale Collapse” warning along the race route. Prioritizing safety first, Chief Referee Di made the decision to call off the race, canceling it altogether as soggy riders made their way back to the starting point.

Di explained that cycling is an all-weather sport, and the race started as planned since no typhoon warnings had been issued by the government. However, the presence of landslides and rockfalls along the route, combined with the yellow-level landslide alert, led him to prioritize participant safety above all else and cancel the race.

This year’s race featured over 500 professional, elite and amateur cyclists from 30 countries, including Team Bahrain Victorius pros Antonio Tiberi, the 2024 Giro d’Italia “white jersey” champion, and Santiago Buitrago, who finished 10th overall in the Tour de France.

Ms. Ho, the Secretary-General of the Taiwan Cyclist Federation, expressed her regret and apologies for the cancellation, noting that the Taiwan KOM Challenge is an annual event for which cyclists train hard throughout the year. While it is unfortunate that the race was suspended due to weather conditions, she emphasized that [Mount] Wuling will always be there, ready for participants to take on the challenge next October at the 14th edition.

Adverse weather conditions are commonplace at the Taiwan KOM Challenge, in 2022 the race was cut-short due to devastating typhoon damage, resulting in the elimination of the final 1000 meters of climbing to Wuling summit.

Photo Credit: Facebook/taiwankom

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