LPR Left Off UCI Wildcard List
by Chris Fontecchio on Feb 10, 2009 6:03 PM EST
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PrintThe UCI published its list of "wildcard teams," UCI Continental Pro teams who meet the standards for inclusion in the largest events such as the three Grand Tours and Pro Tour events such as the five Monuments of cycling. Thirteen teams made the grade, including higher-profile outfits like BMC, ISD, Barloworld, Cervelo Test Team, and Skil-Shimano, meaning their teams met the four criteria: sporting, legal, administrative and ethical. This makes them prime candidates for wildcard invitations.
The biggest names not making the cut were Team LPR, Agritubel and Acqua e Sapone. While not final, the decision likely leaves riders like Danilo DiLuca, Alessandro Petacchi, Stefano Garzelli, Christophe Moreau and Romain Feillu out in the cold. The likelihood of these teams receiving any major invites is not good. As a DiLuca fan, it's a little sad to know he may never get another shot at Liege-Bastogne-Liege, and is on thin ice with the Giro d'Italia. No doubt Petacchi supporters are saying the same thing. In this one case, I wouldn't dismiss some sort of deal with the Giro, which won't lightly exclude a former champion and an all-time stage king, but the odds right now are against their inclusion. Stay tuned.
Update by Gav: French team Agritubel has Wednesday issued a statement confirming that they will pay the necessary cost of adhering to the bio-passport program. This decision will allow them to ride the major races such as Paris-Nice, Paris-Roubaix, and the Tour de France. The cost to the team will run €7500 for each rider on their roster.
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I wouldn't dismiss
some sort of deal with the Giro either. Director Zomegnan has probably taken some very nice “entry fee” bonuses that he’s got no plans of giving back. It’s one thing to bump NGC Medical for a sweeter deal but this is another thing altogether.
What the fuck does the UCI have against LPR?
first they don’t give them a Pro-Conti status, before finally coming to their senses, now this. But the good news is that the historic calender events can still invite Pro-Conti teams that don’t have wildcard status. The only event were a team needs wild card status is the Tour, which LPR won’t do anyway. So they should be a go for T-A, MSR, the Giro, and L-B-L if they get invited. They won’t be able to do Amstel Gold anymore though, because it’s a PT event and those events can only invite wild card status teams. Sucks big time for Moreau and the other Agritubel riders though.
"If you go (with a break), you can either win or not win. If you don't go for it, you definitely won't win."
~ Jens Voigt
Btw, I got the eligibility status from the official UCI rules page
here, so if that’s wrong then the UCI screwed me over :)
"If you go (with a break), you can either win or not win. If you don't go for it, you definitely won't win."
~ Jens Voigt
L-B-L?
No way, an ASO race inviting a sub-standard Italian team? They’ll look at Agritube and any Belgians they can scare up first.
CQRanking.com, you complete me.
by Chris Fontecchio on Feb 10, 2009 10:10 PM EST up reply actions
Si...
Doubt LPR had much chance of riding Liège. But here again, they already have an invite to Amstel Gold Race. So, what happens now?
This UCI announcement is a very confusing business.
Also...
Finishing my thought about being confused…
The point of paying for a ProConti license is to open the way to invites to the major races. These teams were named ProConti. So, um, now the UCI is changing its mind?
Er…
As I posted above
these teams can still get into the historic calender races that are not PT races. The only historic calender event they can’t get into is the Tour. They can’t however get into any of the PT events without wildcard status. So it seems like the UCI doesn’t want them racing in their PT events and that’s why they didn’t get the wildcard, yet they have given them Pro-Conti status so they can race the big races from ASO and RCS. Really I have no clue, it’s extremely tough trying to figure out the brains of the UCI.
"If you go (with a break), you can either win or not win. If you don't go for it, you definitely won't win."
~ Jens Voigt
Better you than me, Phil
What you write here has some internal logic to it. Weird, twisted, mutated logic from hell, but logic none the less. Thanks.
"logic from hell"
yes, I hear Pat Mcquaid actually has a long discussion with the devil before making important decisions.
"If you go (with a break), you can either win or not win. If you don't go for it, you definitely won't win."
~ Jens Voigt
eh, right
But that’s still a problem for Agritubel. And, according to all available accounts, also a problem for LPR at the Giro.
I’m waiting for more info to come out domani. There will be reactions and such.
Well, if those are still the current rules then I don't see a major problem with the Giro
Was LPR a wildcard team last year? I don’t think they were and they still got into the Giro, MSR, and T-A. The rules may have changed after the formation of the new “world calender”. But if they are allowed to then RCS will without a doubt allow LPR to race those big 3. Now Agritubel is in trouble because they wont be able to race the Tour, which might not make the ASO very happy…oh oh, is another UCI-ASO feud coming up?
"If you go (with a break), you can either win or not win. If you don't go for it, you definitely won't win."
~ Jens Voigt
Actually
I thought they weren’t a wildcard then either??
CQRanking.com, you complete me.
by Chris Fontecchio on Feb 11, 2009 12:17 AM EST up reply actions
Theoretically they could get an invite, realistically they probably wont
although Di Luca is better there than all the riders on those other potential wild card teams combined. The guy won there the last time he raced there. I know it’s a hopeless cause but I really want to see the killer rip it up at L-B-L, it will make the race much more entertaining.
"If you go (with a break), you can either win or not win. If you don't go for it, you definitely won't win."
~ Jens Voigt
Me too
One last time, DiLuca, Cunego and Valverde all on form. How great would that be?
CQRanking.com, you complete me.
by Chris Fontecchio on Feb 10, 2009 11:32 PM EST up reply actions
Drool....Drool.....Drool
and I have high hopes Valverde will go all out at this years L-B-L. The man was really looking to win today and was definitely going for it, so much so that he almost fucked up his whole year by crashing on the final turn, and that’s in the Vuelta Mallorca for God’s sake. Focusing only on the Tour my ass.
"If you go (with a break), you can either win or not win. If you don't go for it, you definitely won't win."
~ Jens Voigt
Yeah
Could he be in full-season program sandbagging mode? It’s bad enough to pull that on a daily basis.
CQRanking.com, you complete me.
by Chris Fontecchio on Feb 11, 2009 12:18 AM EST up reply actions
Very odd that Agritubel is out
They rode the Tour last year and have a yellow jersey wearer.
Also, didn’t Acqua&Sapone already get a Giro invite? Or did I dream that?
si
Chris may soon get his answer to the question: how long before the next UCI-ASO squabble?
by Susie Hartigan on Feb 10, 2009 6:49 PM EST up reply actions
They're not necessarily excluded from the Giro
According to tuttobiciweb, the teams denied wild card status can still ask to participate in the biological passport, but they’ll have to pay a lot more for it (7500 euros per rider) than the wildcard teams (60,000 euros for the entire team). A team willing (and able) to lay out the big bucks could still meet the RCS requirement of participation in the passport program.
tuttobiciweb also indicates that there is some sort of distinction between the situations of LPR and Acqua&Sapone (who were “refused, like CSF”), and Agritubel and Xacobeo, who were “considered inadmissible, like Amica Chips.”
Ok, but could someone summarize...
or point me to a summary of the difference between what happened with CSF and Amica Chips? Or failing that, tell me whether it’s worse in this case to be considered inadmissible or refused.
This was a good guess on my part as far as choosing for my virtual team
So glad I don’t have to go back and refigure. Aside from my VDS pettiness, this really sucks for this team.
So I still don't have a clue here.
Do the non P-T teams that have invites in hand get to use them still or not?
Do we have two levels of Pro Conti?
Pro Conti lite and
Enhanced Pro Conti- now with wild card!
No one has asked which of the following criteria there is a problem with:
"Wild card" labels are given only to teams that fulfil strict quality criteria on a number of levels: sporting (history of strong performances by team and riders), legal (observance of the rules), administrative (rigorous management and transparency) and ethical (especially anti-doping management and procedures).
Teams with a "wild card" label are obliged to participate in the biological passport programme (which includes making a financial contribution and agreeing to provide athletes’ whereabouts).
From the UCI pressrelease.
As far as I can figure out, either there is an administrative problem with the team (H2O-like stuff?) or they aren’t part of the bio-passport. They have strong sporting history and no breaking of rules (unless Dilucas pathetic “Oil for Drugs”-slap on the wrist is used as an excuse).
We will probably hear about it in the polemica in the next few days.
UCI
I am reading some comments here suggesting or suspecting the UCI is allowing LPR a wild card status as if it was because of some personal issue between the UCI and LPR. I think that’s not the case. The UCI has clearly stated the conditions teams have to meet to become PT-wild cards. Any team not living up to those conditions will not receive a wild card, among which is LPR. It’s that simple. If LPR wanted a wild card status and the consequently did not receive one, they’ve got themselves to blame.. they didn’t meet all requirements, whereas teams like Barloworld and Vacansoleil did meet all.
>suspecting the UCI is allowing LPR a wild card status
That should read: “suspecting the UCI is NOT allowing LPR a wild card status”
Yeah
I don’t think there are any secret vendettas involved. The UCI announced the criteria, so presumably LPR missed out on the basis of said criteria.
CQRanking.com, you complete me.
by Chris Fontecchio on Feb 11, 2009 10:01 AM EST up reply actions
Weird
There’s a note in the CN notes today about what an exciting time it is to be at Xacobeo Galicia, and how amped they are for the Giro. Did CN not get the memo about the wildcards, and how Xacobeo didn’t get one? Again, maybe they too are headed to the Giro notwithstanding, but I somehow don’t think yesterday was a good day for the squad.
CQRanking.com, you complete me.
by Chris Fontecchio on Feb 11, 2009 10:03 AM EST reply actions
one explainer
“Teams with a wild card label are obliged to participate in the biological passport programme, which includes making a financial contribution and agreeing to provide athletes’ whereabouts”.
Hm, maybe these non-WC teams refused to spend the money?
CQRanking.com, you complete me.
by Chris Fontecchio on Feb 11, 2009 10:05 AM EST reply actions
Probably
I would have liked to be a fly on the wall for that conversation
- “We’re just a poor leetle team from the italian country, we can’t afford these expensive passports”
- “But you had the money to sign superstar DiLuca?”
- " Well e my aunty Sophia had some money stowed away and……………"
- “And it seems you had the funds to sign Signore Pettachi too?”
- “Ahem…… well….. did I say we’re just a poor leetle team………………..”
Except they are part of the passport program this year
"If you go (with a break), you can either win or not win. If you don't go for it, you definitely won't win."
~ Jens Voigt
Where did you find that info?
I did a quick search of their and the UCI sites this morning and found nothing. I thought I read it somewhere though.
I read about it before
that Di Luca was saying he expects to get into the big races this year because his team is now part of the passport program, that’s were I got it from but I’ll try to look for another source to be sure.
"If you go (with a break), you can either win or not win. If you don't go for it, you definitely won't win."
~ Jens Voigt
Here is a quote from Di Luca in CN, from November
“I don’t see any problems because we are abiding by the Biological Passport. This year was difficult because there was not the requested wildcard for the ProTour races. … My races are the Amstel [Gold], Flèche Wallonne and Liège-Bastogne-Liège. To also repeat at the Giro like in 2007, but I am more interested in the Worlds.”
"If you go (with a break), you can either win or not win. If you don't go for it, you definitely won't win."
~ Jens Voigt
Curiouser and curiouser
That leaves us with "administrative (rigorous management and transparency) " problems, which means what?
More cash to Switzerland
Around 200.000 Euro for non wild card teams as opposed to 60.000 for those accepted.
hmmm
translation problemos and all, but “abiding by” does not necessarily mean “participating in” or “paying for” . . .
I vaguely remember those reports from last year
they were complaining then that the bio-passport scheme was hugely expensive for teams outside the magic circle, but that they intended to fully enrol this year. I’m waiting for more details but the story really puzzles me. I would have thought that if you satisfied the criteria for Pro Conti then getting the passports was just a matter of ticking the box and sending in a cheque. I hope we get a bit more detail soon.
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