No Professional Continental licence for Pedaltech-Cyclingnews

Team Pedaltech-Cyclingnews got the bad news from the UCI this week: the British team will have to run the 2008 season as a Continental team, since it was denied a Professional Continental licence. "I'm sorry that the UCI decided this way," team manager Eric Vanderaerden told sporza.be. "Now we must reorganise everything in a hurry. I had not expected this. The finances were in order and all the contracts had already been signed.

"The UCI didn't give an exact reason why we didn't get the licence," he continued. "Our sponsors will remain but we must still wait and see if they give us enough money to carry us over."

It was not clear what would become of the riders, such as Steffen Wesemann, who finished third in Paris-Roubaix in 2007. "It is not yet certain that we will lose Steffen," Vanderaerden said. "That depends on what the sponsors want to give. With Wesemann we had hoped to take part in some larger races."

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One thing is clear for the riders: they are most likely out of a paid job. "Since we are not a Professional Continental team, the riders' contracts are not longer valid," he concluded. "A few riders have already looked for a new team, but without success. The coming days will be crucial."