Teams to request amendment to ASO agreement

The International Association of Professional Cycling teams (AIGCP) said Friday after a three-hour meeting that it is going to propose amendments to its contracts with Amaury Sports Organisation (ASO), the organizers of the Paris Nice race scheduled for March 9-16. A key topic of discussion was the participation of teams in the season's major events, if not run under UCI rules.

Earlier this week, ASO decided to take Paris-Nice off the international calendar and to run it instead with the French federation. UCI President Pat McQuaid had urged teams to boycott the event in response, but the AIGCP decided in favor of participating. However, the teams are following up on one of McQuaid's chief concerns - without UCI rules specifying participation, the organizers are able to dictate what teams can ride major events, including immediate expulsion of riders or teams if ASO perceived a threat of image damage for its organization or the event.

On the eve of Het Volk, AIGCP's directing committee studied the ASO agreement in detail for the French race. According to the AFP, AIGCP President Eric Boyer wanted to make sure the team's legitimate concerns were heard. "We'd like to make conditions for starting [events] common," said Boyer, who suggested each team make sure it had assurance of participation in the form of appropriate guaranteeing language in all contracts.