All teams decide to leave UCI ProTour series
The UCI's ProTour series appears to be officially dead after all 17 teams at the Tour de France decided to leave the series and not renew their licences next season. The agreement was reached at a meeting between the teams and the three Grand Tour organisers Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO), RCS Sport and Unipublic during the Tour's rest day in Pau. The UCI was not present at the meeting. "It has been decided unanimously not to renew the ProTour licences for the 2009 season," read a joint statement from the teams. The teams indicated that they would form a new alliance with the three Grand Tour organisers to come up with a new structure to replace the failed ProTour concept. "The teams are working to develop a new system of organisation of professional cycling," the statement added. The team managers were tight-lipped about the details of the new system, but Team Columbia's Bob Stapleton told Cyclingnews, "There is a good union in the sport to make progress amongst those teams," he said of the 17 soon to be former ProTour squads."I think there is finally a need to cooperate to make changes in the sport." He said that an official statement would be released "at the right time". Stapleton observed that due to the split between the Grand Tour organisers and the sport's governing body, "one way to maintain a balance is to see the teams working together". He said that the Tour was a good time to have the initial meeting, and that the new structure for cycling will evolve over the next few months.
The UCI's ProTour series appears to be officially dead after all 17 teams at the Tour de France decided to leave the series and not renew their licences next season. The agreement was reached at a meeting between the teams and the three Grand Tour organisers Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO), RCS Sport and Unipublic during the Tour's rest day in Pau. The UCI was not present at the meeting. "It has been decided unanimously not to renew the ProTour licences for the 2009 season," read a joint statement from the teams. The teams indicated that they would form a new alliance with the three Grand Tour organisers to come up with a new structure to replace the failed ProTour concept. "The teams are working to develop a new system of organisation of professional cycling," the statement added. The team managers were tight-lipped about the details of the new system, but Team Columbia's Bob Stapleton told Cyclingnews, "There is a good union in the sport to make progress amongst those teams," he said of the 17 soon to be former ProTour squads."I think there is finally a need to cooperate to make changes in the sport." He said that an official statement would be released "at the right time". Stapleton observed that due to the split between the Grand Tour organisers and the sport's governing body, "one way to maintain a balance is to see the teams working together". He said that the Tour was a good time to have the initial meeting, and that the new structure for cycling will evolve over the next few months.