The BinckBank Tour's WorldTour status is at stake, with the UCI imposing a series of measures against the Belgian/Dutch race following "safety failures" at the 2019 event in August.

Many riders complained about safety during the competition, with concerns ranging from the width of the roads to the barriers used in the final kilometers of some stages.

The CPA, an association of professional cyclists, has ventured its frustration with the UCI as it prepares to take up the issue with the UCI. Discussions took place last week at the UCI headquarters in Switzerland and it was decided to take action.

"Based on the report of the UCI Commissaires Panel and after speaking with the organizers, the UCI has identified various situations that violate the UCI rules on organization and safety of events and the specifications for organizers," a statement released by the UCI on Monday reads.

As a result, the UCI will decide whether the race should remain part of the World Tour calendar after evaluating the "quality and safety standards" of the 2020 event. Decisions regarding the status of the Games will be based on that evaluation."

In the meantime, the UCI will take steps to ensure that the 2020 Congress is held as safely as possible. Technical advisors will be appointed by the UCI and their costs will be borne by the organizers. Finally, the organizers were handed an undisclosed amount of fines.

This sanction is the first to be imposed under new provisions introduced in the UCI Regulations earlier this year, which allow for punitive rulings for organizational shortcomings.

However, race director Rob Diskert insisted that the UCI had evaluated the route and determined it to be safe.

"We got permission [from the UCI] to race without any problems. "Only the time trial had to be changed a little bit. Only the time trial had to be changed a little bit.

"We think our stage, the third stage in Aalter, is safe. I can understand the criticism from some riders."