Bid for third presidential term still hinges primarily on outcome of Cycling Ireland EGM
Following a setback to Pat McQuaid’s attempt to gain nomination for his re-election as UCI president from Cycling Ireland, Swiss Cycling has confirmed that at this point in time, he has not made formal contact with it over the matter.
McQuaid is nearing the end of his second term as president and needs to secure nomination from one of those two national federations to be able to stand again.
Cycling Ireland has proposed him in the past but with complications there, the Swiss federation is a Plan B for McQuaid. His residency in that country makes it possible for him to also seek the required nomination from its board.
However the Swiss federation has told VeloNation that he hasn’t made an official request along those lines.
“Pat McQuaid didn’t ask us yet for an official support – so until now no [there has been no] official nomination request,” Swiss Cycling press officer Selina Kuepfer said.
“If he does, we have to discuss it with our board, and they will decide whether to support him or not.”
It means that at the time being at least, he is pinning his hopes on the Irish nomination request.
Cycling Ireland originally backed McQuaid’s candidature on April 12th but after former board member Anto Moran pointed out that the federation hadn’t followed its own rules during that board meeting, it met again on April 26th to discuss the issue.
The rule violation occurred because part of the original board meeting was chaired by a non board member, thus breaking Article 42 of Cycling Ireland’s regulations.
Cycling Ireland’s board could simply have voted again to give McQuaid its backing, but instead it decided to pass the matter over to the CI clubs under the EGM provision.
Those clubs will meet in the Red Cow hotel on June 15th and there they will decide whether or not they will support McQuaid.
If they decide not to, the Swiss federation’s backing will be crucial.
McQuaid could in theory bypass the uncertainties of the CI EGM process by going to Swiss Cycling instead but, at this point in time, it appears that he hasn’t opted for that course of action.
While he had little difficulties in being voted president in 2005 and again in 2009, things are more complicated this time for McQuaid. He and the UCI have been under pressure over the Lance Armstrong/US Postal Service scandal, the UCI’s handling of the case, plus its decision to scrap the Independent Commission it already said would be allowed scrutinise it.