With the cancellation of Strade Bianche, which was scheduled to take place on Saturday, March 7, attention has turned to the next women's World Tour race, the Ronde van Drenthe.

Covid-19 is not as prevalent in the Netherlands as it is in Italy, but with several men's and women's teams having voluntarily withdrawn from all racing for most of March, it was not a surprise that the race would take place.

When contacted by Cycling News, the race organization confirmed that Ronde van Drenthe was not in danger of cancellation.

"Barring any dramatic developments in the coming week, the race will go ahead," said race secretary general Huub van Ism. 'Three women's teams, Mitchelton-Scott, Movistar Team, and Rally Cycling, have cancelled their participation, but otherwise everything is on schedule.'

These three teams have suspended their race programs until March 22, which includes the Ronde van Drenthe. Although the Netherlands is not a high-risk area, according to Mitchelton-Scott, "constant travel increases health risks and makes logistics and potential quarantine periods very difficult to manage."

Minor changes were made to the Ronde van Drenthe race route. Due to the poor condition of the cobblestones, several cobblestone sectors were eliminated from the race, resulting in a new 156.7 km course that included seven cobblestone sectors and three VAM-Berg laps in the first half of the race. Unlike previous years, there is no cobblestone sector in the last 40 km, which may favor sprinters over attackers.

The Ronde van Drenthe Women's World Tour race will be held on Sunday, March 15 to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II in the Netherlands, preceded by the women's 1.2 race on Friday, March 12 and the men's 1.1 race on Saturday, March 14.