The Giro d' Italia will start on October 3 and the Spanish Vuelta will be held from October 20, the International Cycling Union (UCI) said on Tuesday, as it published a heavily revised calendar in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis. 

The Giro will be held over 23 days ending on October 25, while the Vuelta will finish on November 8 after the first three stages initially set to be held in the Netherlands were cut from the program. 

The start of the Vuelta will now overlap with the final stages of the Giro, but the UCI said it had little choice. 

"The Vuelta goes through the Pyrenees, and in mid-November it would have been too risky because of the weather and the lack of light," UCI president David Lappartient explained. 

Four of the top five one-day races will also be held in October, making for a frantic month of cycling following the coronavirus pandemic that has brought almost all of world sport to a halt since March. 

The World Tour season will officially begin on August 1 with the Strade Bianche one-day race and end with the Tour of Lombardy on October 31, with the three grand tours of France, Italy and Spain sandwiched in between. 

For female riders, the first edition of the Paris-Roubaix women's race has been added to the calendar, slated to start on October 25. 

The UCI said on its website the new calendar would give different types of riders the most opportunities for races within a short time frame. 

With almost 200 riders packed in the peloton at times and many thousands of fans lining the roads, cycling faces a unique challenge to keep its participants and supporters safe. 

The sport's governing body is now working on health rules for teams, riders and race organizers, and all cycling will remain subject to the progress of the coronavirus. 

Tour de France not guaranteed 

The UCI last month said the Tour de France would be held from August 29 to September 20 after the governing body suspended elite racing until August 1, but French sports minister Roxana Maracineanu said there is no guarantee it will go ahead. 

"Many people are begging me to keep the Tour even behind closed doors," Maracineanu told France Television on Tuesday. 

"I hope it will take place but I am not sure. We do not know what the epidemic will be like after lockdown," she added.  

France's lockdown, in place since March 17, will be partially lifted next Monday, although the season's of several sports championships, including soccer's Ligue 1 and rugby's Top 14, have already been abandoned.  

(With input from agencies)