Which version is right?
Selections get emailed, copied and edited until nobody is sure which file holds the latest names and dates.
Race selection planning for cycling teams
Race selections, reserves and rider programmes in one plan
Pick the riders and staff for every race, mark who is selected and who is in reserve, and follow each rider's programme across the season. In VelOps the selection lives on the race itself and feeds the calendars, the logistics and the rider app.
The problem with selection spreadsheets
One selection, too many versions
In many teams the race selection lives in a spreadsheet, a group chat and a few inboxes at the same time. Each copy is slightly different, and every late change has to be passed on by hand to the riders, the staff and whoever books the travel.
Last-minute changes
A starter falls ill and a reserve moves up. That change has to reach the rider, the staff and the travel planning, fast.
Typed in twice
The same names are retyped into travel bookings, calendars and messages to riders, and every copy is a new chance of a mistake.
How race selection works in VelOps
Every race has its own selection
VelOps is team management and race logistics software for professional cycling teams (men's, women's and development squads): a back office for races, selections, travel, staff and team cars, plus a rider app. In the back office every race is an event, and the selection is part of that event: who rides, who is in reserve and which staff go along.
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One event per race
Each race has tabs for General, Riders & staff, Logistics, Hotels, Results & days, Documents and Tasks. An event is Draft or Confirmed, and creating a race also creates its standard tasks.
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Riders by division
Riders in a selection are grouped by division: Men, Women or Devo. Men's, women's and development squads are planned in the same platform.
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Staff by role
Staff are grouped by role, such as sports director, soigneur, mechanic and doctor.
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Period and status per person
Everyone in the selection has their own period, from and to, and a status: Selected or Reserved. If a rider leaves a day early or a staff member arrives a day ahead, they simply get their own dates.
Rider calendar
Selection progress at a glance
The rider calendar, also called the performance calendar, shows every race per division as a time block with its selection progress, for example 6/7: six riders selected for seven places. Under the races, each rider's row shows day by day where they are selected, in reserve or travelling.
- All races per division as time blocks, with selection progress
- Per rider, per day: selected (dot), reserve (R) or travel (T)
- Overlapping races show as several dots on the same day
- Race days counted per rider
Rider programmes over the season
Race days per rider, all season
Every selection adds up to a rider's programme. The rider calendar counts race days per rider, and the season dashboard shows race days per rider as ridden and still to ride, so you can see how race days are spread across the squad before you pick the next selection.
- Race days per rider: ridden and still to ride
- Filter by division: Men, Women or Devo
- Training camps sit in the same planning as the races
In the rider app
Riders know where they stand
The selection also feeds the rider app. Under My races, each rider sees their own races as race cards with dates, classification and their status: Selected or Reserve. No digging through emails or group chats to find out who is racing.
- My races: dates, classification and status per race, with the option to show past races
- Who else is going: the other riders on the race with their status, and the staff with their role
- My trip: transport and hotel for each race; flights and trains appear once staff mark them visible
From selection to travel
The selection feeds the logistics
You make the selection once, on the race. That selection feeds the rider and staff calendars, the travel and logistics for the race and the rider app, so everyone works from the same list of who is going.
Calendars
The rider calendar and the staff calendar show who is where, day by day, across the whole programme. Staff periods can be adjusted right from the staff calendar.
Travel and logistics
Transport legs per race with departure and arrival, flight reference, driver and vehicle, plus an e-ticket code, ticket link and baggage for each traveller.
Rider app
Riders see their races, their status, their trip and who else is going, on their own phone.
Background
How pro teams work with starters and reserves
In professional road cycling, a team picks its starters for each race, sometimes called titular riders, and names one or more reserves. A reserve is ready to step in if a starter falls ill, gets injured or is needed at another race.
The number of starters a team may enter depends on the race, and UCI rules require teams to confirm their starters and reserves before the race. Selections often change in the days before a start, which is exactly when one current list matters most.
VelOps gives the team that one current list. For every race it records who is selected, who is in reserve and for which days, for riders and staff alike. VelOps is a planning tool for the team: it does not submit entries to the UCI or to race organisers, but the names you confirm can come straight from the same selection that drives your calendars, logistics and rider app.
Race selection FAQ
Questions about selections
How do we mark a rider as a reserve for a race?
Add the rider to the selection of that race with the status Reserved instead of Selected. Every person in a selection also has their own period, from and to. Reserves show as R in the rider calendar and as Reserve on the rider's race card in the rider app.
Where else does the race selection show up?
The selection feeds the rider and staff calendars, the logistics for the race and the rider app. Riders see their own status for each race in the app, and the other riders and staff on that race appear under Who else is going.
Does VelOps submit our starters and reserves to the UCI?
No. VelOps is the team's own planning tool and does not submit entries to the UCI or to race organisers. It keeps one current list of who is selected and who is in reserve for each race, so the names the team confirms can come straight from the same selection that drives its calendars, logistics and rider app.
Book a demo
See race selection live
Book a demo and we'll show how VelOps handles selections, reserves and rider programmes, using your own races as the example.
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