General manager Patrick Lefevere at the Omega Pharma-Quick Step Cycling Team press conference(Image credit: Photopress.be)
Tom Boonen leads his Omega Pharma Quick Step team onto the podium(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
Iljo Keisse and his Omega Pharma-Quick Step teammates were working for Mark Cavendish on the opening stage.(Image credit: Bettini Photo)
Team manager Patrick Lefevere has hit out at the UCI after the sport's governing body has ruled that the Etixx-iHNed Continental team and the Omega Pharma-Quick Step WorldTour team cannot compete in the same races.
Lefevere created the Etixx-IHNed Continental team after calls from the UCI for major teams to help develop young talent. He signed 12 riders from across Europe and invested a reported 500,000 Euro in the project. However the team was apparently stopped from riding Sunday's Classic Sud Ardèche race in France because of UCI rules aimed at stopping teams owned or funded by the same sponsor from possibly working together in races.
A similar rule also stops the EFC-Omega Pharma-Quick Step Under 23 team from competing in races with the WorldTour team. Professional Continental and Continental teams with the same sponsor are also affected. Seven other WorldTour teams and their development teams area affected by the rule.
Lefevere vented his anger via Twitter: "Only the #uci is able to destroy the hope of young riders No #OPQS with #etixxihned in the same races even worse," he wrote.
"No #efc and #etixxihned in the same race. Why should we still invest ? 1 500 000 euro investment lost with 1 simple E mail. Great communication"
Cyclingnews understands that the UCI has recently warned race organisers and race commissaries about inviting teams with the same paying agent or sponsor. A letter from new UCI Road Co-ordinator Matthew Knight shown to Cyclingnews by a race organiser lists the WorldTour teams, the Continental and the development teams they also back.
Eight WorldTour teams support Continental teams but they are not permitted to race together.
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Astana Pro Team – Continental Team Astana Blanco Pro Cycling - Rabobank Development Team BMC Racing Team – BMC Development Team Garmin-Sharp – La Pomme Marseille Lampre-Merida – Joker-Merida Omega Pharma-Quick Step - Etixx-Ihned RadioShack Leopard - Leopard Trek Continental Team Argos-Shimano – Shimano Racing Team Team Saxo-Tinkoff - Blue Water Cycling.
Stephen is one of the most experienced members of the Cyclingnews team, having reported on professional cycling since 1994. Before becoming Editor-at-large, he was Head of News at Cyclingnews. He has previously worked for Shift Active Media, Reuters and Cycling Weekly. He is a member of the Board of the Association Internationale des Journalistes du Cyclisme (AIJC).
