2020 Amgen Tour of California bicycling race put on hold

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - The Amgen Tour of California bicycling race has been put on hold for 2020.

Race organizers announced Tuesday that they are reassessing the race and hope to relaunch in 2021.

"This has been a very difficult decision to make, but the business fundamentals of the Amgen Tour of California have changed since we launched the race 14 years ago," said Kristin Klein, President of the Amgen Tour of California and Executive Vice President of AEG Sports.  "While professional cycling globally continues to grow and we are very proud of the work we have done to increase the relevance of professional cycling, particularly in the United States, it has become more challenging each year to mount the race. This new reality has forced us to re-evaluate our options, and we are actively assessing every aspect of our event to determine if there is a business model that will allow us to successfully relaunch the race in 2021."

The race is the largest annual sporting event in the state, and organizers say it has generated more than $3.5 billion for the state's economy since it first started in 2006.

In past years, bicyclists made stops at cities and communities on the Central and South coasts for different legs of the tour.