Thailand Announces 2027 Tour of Thailand Cycling Event
Thailand has unveiled plans for the Tour of Thailand 2027, an international road cycling race to be held in Chiang Rai in honor of Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn's 72nd birthday. The event will award UCI points to help Thai and Asian riders qualify for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics while promoting tourism through live broadcasts and showcasing local attractions.
Maj. Gen. Decha Hakrasri said the men's race will run from 24 to 29 March 2027 and the women's race from 31 March to 2 April 2027, both held entirely in Chiang Rai province, with the final stage coinciding with the princess's birthday. The men's event comprises six stages and the women's three stages, each classified as a UCI 2.1 race offering points to the top 25 finishers, with the winner receiving 125 points. Although the points are modest compared with leading European races, they are valuable for Asian riders seeking to improve their world ranking and secure Olympic qualification, which requires accumulating points through October 2027. He added that both races will use routes showcasing Chiang Rai's natural and cultural attractions, broadcast live on Facebook Live and YouTube via Thai PBS, supporting the Amazing Thailand 2027 campaign and promoting secondary tourism in line with government and Tourism Authority of Thailand policy. The cycling association has assigned coach Visut Kasiyaphat ('Thum') and the technical team to survey the routes by October, produce a technical guide, and send it to invited teams by December 2026, following discussions with Asian cycling federation leaders at the 20th Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan, where nations such as China, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan expressed interest.
