From a hot and dusty summer Strade Bianche all the way through to the dim sun of an autumnal Vuelta a España, this 2020 season was one like no other as the template pro cycling season got turned on its head.

While the racing schedule was overhauled due to the most terrible of circumstances, were there any takeaways or winning ingredients in the wacky restarted season that could be worth repeating?

Our European correspondents Andrew Hood, James Startt and Jim Cotton deliver their takes: What were the winning elements of the weird and wonderful 2020 season?

The Vuelta a España played out in the long shadows of autumn rather than high sun of summer. Photo: David Ramos/Getty Images Andrew Hood (@eurohoody): The 2020 season was amazing in many aspects, and the fact that the sport pulled off most of its major races on the men’s side is nothing short of extraordinary. Do I want to see a repeat of this in 2021? Hell no.

The jumbled, reshuffled schedule was nothing short of maddening, but it was obviously better than the alternative. In 2021, we got back to the existing calendar, which works pretty well if you ask me. Despite some critics who say the racing calendar is too long or lacks a “narrative” — whatever that means — cycling’s sprawling international calendar delivers across many metrics.

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