Giro riders protest finish dangers and prize money

Rider representatives from the UCI ProTeams met in Cinisello Balsamo, Italy yesterday during the Giro rest day, along with CPA (Association of Professional Cyclists) president Francesco Moser, ACCPI (Italian Association of professional Cyclists) president Amedeo Colombo, ACP (Spanish Association of Professional Cyclists) president José Rodriguez and UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale) president Hein Verbruggen.

According to a CPA statement, riders expressed their concerns about safety issues in this year's race, denouncing the dangerous nature of some stage finishes and the lack of lighting in tunnels. As the CPA diplomatically puts it, the riders' group, "invites the [Giro] organizer to do things in such a way that such situations never again happen in the future."

Riders also discussed the unresolved issue of prize money, which was a source of contention before the start of the Giro. Riders rejected the Giro organiser's explanation for reduced prize money in 2005 - the general economic situation. The CPA stated that it, "also considers ... unacceptable the fact that, a few days before the finish of the race, the situation has not been cleared up yet. The organization will be asked to send a written and definitive answer about that particular point next Thursday (26/05) evening at the latest." If no resolution of the prize money issue has occurred by then, "riders don't exclude the possibility of holding a demonstration to assert their rights."

Riders also requested that the UCI's pre-race medical examinations be moved to the evening before the prologue to reduce the time riders have to spend at they event venue before it actually gets started.