Fewer than 20 per cent of riders polled by the Cyclistes Professionnels Associés (CPA) were against the UCI’s proposed gearing restriction trial, claims the body's president, Adam Hansen.
Writing for Domestique, Hansen explains that, while the proposal didn’t come from the CPA – the union that represents professional cyclists – it supports the move because it is “committed to following the collective voice of the peloton”.
Planned to take place at the Tour of Guangxi in October, the test would have seen riders restricted to gearing limited to 10.46 metres development – roughly equivalent to a 54x11t with a 28mm tyre.
As was widely reported at the time, this would have impacted SRAM-sponsored teams because its 12-speed road cassettes start with a 10t cog.
However, the UCI was instructed to halt the test following a challenge by SRAM tested in the courts of the Belgian Competition Authority (BCA).
At the time, the BCA said the trial didn’t “meet the required conditions of objectivity and transparency" and risked creating "serious and difficult to repair" harm for SRAM.
In a statement published following the original ruling, the UCI contested the BCA’s decision, questioning its authority to make a decision: “[the ruling] is issued by a Belgian authority responding to a complaint from a US company against a Swiss sports association regarding a test to be carried out on Chinese territory.”
SRAM to fund litigation against itself
As reported by Cyclingnews, the UCI will contest the BCA’s ruling using funds from the SafeR budget, following a meeting of the SafeR supervisory board.
The CPA is one of four stakeholders that make up SafeR, along with the UCI, Association of Professional Cycling Teams (AIGCP), and the International Association of Race Organisers (AIOCC). Cyclingnews reports that all parties, except the AIGCP, voted for the proposal.
SafeR is part-funded by contributions from teams. This latest move means SRAM-sponsored teams will, in effect, be funding litigation against their sponsor.
Hansen notes that, along with the support of riders, the CPA’s decision to support the move is “based on a vote by the national associations”, and that if the test doesn’t go ahead, “then SafeR has no purpose”.
SRAM did not respond to requests for comment on Hansen’s claims or the latest developments in time for publication.
