Traditional French early-season stage race has not met the requirements of the French Federation
The 2012 edition of the Tour Méditerranéen will not go ahead, according to a statement from the French Cycling Federation (FFC). The race, which was scheduled to run between February 8th and 12th, next year, has been running since 1974, and was most recently won by French climber David Moncoutié (Cofidis).
“The conditions for scheduling in 2012 have not been met,”reads the FFC statement, “the Tour Med 2012 can not be organised.”
Despite its relatively low International Cycling Union (UCI) ranking of 2.1, the five-day Tour Med has generally been able to attract a high quality field, largely thanks to the fact that it offers some tough climbing so early in the season. The iconic climb of Mont Faron, above the Naval port of Toulon, has been an almost constant fixture in the race in recent years, and generally provides a springboard for the eventual winner.
Moncoutié’s victory along the steep, narrow road to the top of the 584 metre high peak – coming after three consecutive sprint victories from Romain Feillu (Vacansoleil-DM) – was enough to secure the overall prize, ahead of former mountainbiker Jean-Christophe Péraud (AG2R La Mondiale.
The race has been won by such names as Eddy Merckx, Laurent Jalabert, and Paolo Bettini in the past, with former World champion Gerrie Knetemann holding the record of three wins.
With finance a likely cause of its non-registration though, and with a calendar clash with the far more lucrative Tour of Qatar, the 2011 edition of the Tour Med could well have been the last.