Organisers of the Abu Dhabi Tour are awaiting a response from world governing body UCI to upgrade the second-running of the event to a 2.HC.

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The successful inaugural race last October was carried out under a 2.1 categorisation, which is the third tier of professional stage races.

The calendar for the 2016 UCI Asia Tour is yet to be finalised, with representatives from the capital hoping for an improvement.

“The group calendar is still under discussion,” said Lorenzo Giorgetti, CEO of co-organisers RCS Sports and Events JLT. “I believe in a couple of weeks, we will know everything.

“We believe what Abu Dhabi showed was pretty-well received by everyone. I do not see why this should not happen after all the effort which has been put in place.”

An improvement of the event’s category would help attract a stronger field of riders and teams, as more world ranking points are awarded.