David Lappartient, president of the UCI, told AFP on Friday: "When you see crashes like this, violent, serious, we are obviously concerned. The season has started too early. Spring has barely arrived and the crashes are multiplying. Very serious ones." 

The fact that the crashes have involved important riders, team leaders and contenders for victory in the world's biggest races has added to the anticipation and concern. First it was Wout Van Aert in Belgium at the Tour of Flanders, who broke his collarbone and will miss the Tour of Flanders and who knows what else. Now the Tour of the Basque Country has taken out three of the world's best: Primoz Roglic, Jonas Vingegaard and Remco Evenepoel.

As if that wasn't enough, the day after their crashes, Spanish rider Mikel Landa crashed out of the fifth stage of the Tour of the Basque Country and broke his collarbone. The 'war report' couldn't be more worrying: Two-time Tour de France winner Jonas Vingegaard suffered lung damage, broken ribs and a broken collarbone. Remco Evenepoel also broke his collarbone in the same incident.

And Primoz Roglic, who was leading the general classification, retired despite not suffering any fractures. Meanwhile, Jay Vine, Sean Quinn and Steff Cras were also taken to hospital. Landa, who was signed by Evenepoel as a luxury rider this year, will also need surgery for his injuries.

The French UCI chief was speaking a day after an impressive crash in which the three leaders crashed in the same corner and suffered serious injuries. Lappartient believes the causes are "multifactorial. Equipment is obviously a problem. The bikes have made an extraordinary leap forward. Speed records are being broken at every race."

Disc brakes are also the focus of the riders' unions. "It is something that deserves to be documented. The UCI could have made the approval of disc brakes conditional on the introduction of shields (on the brakes). They didn't. It's an issue we want to put back on the table. There are no taboos," he insisted. Advances in the bikes allow much faster speeds, and the riders are getting better prepared every day. But it's a cocktail without limits.

The UCI president was "shocked" and referred to the use of protectors as "a bit like airbags". However, not everything can be blamed on the equipment. He also pointed to the "behaviour of the riders" and the failings of some organisers. 

"A lot of things have been done. But there are still some things that shouldn't be seen. In the prologue in the Basque Country, Roglic almost collided with a car in the final kilometre. We wonder what that car was doing there".

The leader recalls some of the behaviour of the riders who, according to the UCI president, "account for 50% of the crashes that are due to their behaviour." David Lappartient doesn't want to put all the blame on the riders: "It's obvious that a lot of things happen during the race that can't be controlled. Fierce competition and increasing demands mean that riders take risks at many moments. That's what professional sport is all about. He reiterated the proposal to sanction behaviour," he said.

"Our willingness to introduce, from this year onwards, a system of yellow and red cards, as in football, so that dangerous behaviour can be punished. Aware that "the riders' unions expect rapid action", David Lappartient said. He is pleased that the four cycling families (organisers, riders, teams and the UCI) have accepted the creation of SafeR, a body that will work for the safety of riders.

The UCI is concerned. The riders' unions are speaking out. The president of the French professional cyclists' union (UNCP) on Thursday called on the UCI to "take responsibility" for making the sport safer, according to AFP. Pascal Chanteur said he was "angry" at the recent spate of accidents. "Do we have to wait for another death? For a cyclist to lose both legs and his life before people wake up? If that's the idea, we're not far off," he told AFP.

It's obvious. It's difficult to find a solution. Demand is very high and the interests of the big companies and teams are also at stake. The preparation of the riders is so great that it has reached a very high level. Everyone wants to be at the front. In the past, only the leaders went to the front and there was less danger because the peloton was smaller. Now the domestiques are just as fast as the leaders and they all arrive together at the most important moment, which increases the risk of accidents.

"I'm not saying the UCI is responsible, but they have a responsibility to fully implement our recommendations to move forward in terms of safety," said Chanteur. 

"For example, we are perfectly capable of reducing speed by changing tyres. Why can Formula 1 do that and we can't? We're the only sport that can't adapt and we're still killing people. Chanteur said that the highest number of accidents was partly due to the increasing amount of "urban furniture". But it's very difficult to configure the street and its furniture to avoid problems in racing. 

"Carbon is light and very rigid. There's no margin for error. Wheels and tyres are nothing like those used in the past. The drama can happen at any time. Today we use 56x10. They go downhill at 80 km/h. They're almost naked. If you fall, you can't get away," he commented." It also happens in other sports. Cycling cannot be left behind by technological progress. 

Chanteur insists that the peloton is "angry" at the current situation following the accident that threatened the life of Fabio Jakobsen at the 2020 Tour of Poland. The sprinter was nearly killed after crashing into the barriers at breakneck speed during a downhill sprint.

The 56-year-old former professional said: "It's not easy for a cyclist to say what I say. The riders are employees of their teams and multinationals and they know what their job is. "They are employees and the main financial sponsors of cycling are still the bike brands. I point my finger at these people (the bike manufacturers)". Chanteur's words are harsh: "It's up to them if they want to continue to have accidents or even deaths on their conscience.

For the time being, 2024 could be one of those seasons that marks a before and after. The world's cycling authorities and race organisers will have a guilty conscience after the serious injuries suffered by the peloton's most important riders. 

Cyclists are the protagonists, but they are also the victims. Of course, measures must be taken to sanction irregular behaviour. But it's difficult to stop the race of preparation and technological progress in which cycling has risen.