The UCI has today announced the ratification of a new anti-doping measure which will prevent those deemed guilty of involvement in doping practices from working as part of pro teams.
The new regulation, number 1.1.006.2 in the UCI’s rules, will come into effect on July 1st and apply only to doping violations committed after that point in time. Riders who have been deemed guilty of doping prior to this cut-off will be able to take up such roles.
Many current team directors and others have either tested positive or admitted their involvement in such practices. Some, such as Leopard-Trek’s Kim Andersen and Saxo Bank SunGard’s Bjarne Riis, are already working with teams. Others, such as Michael Rasmussen and Alexandre Vinokourov, have expressed a desire go into directeur sportif roles once their careers have come to an end.
Today’s announcement would make it possible for them to do so. Legally, the UCI may have found it difficult to otherwise have brought in the measure.
Describing the rule as one which will be ‘very important in the medium term to guarantee an increasingly healthy movement for future generations,’ the UCI stated that it would pertain to a wide variety of roles. These include general manager, team manager, coach, doctor, paramedical assistant, mechanic, driver, as well as other functions.
“The UCI Management Committee is fully aware of the difficulties that the adoption of such a measure could imply, but wishes to once again reconfirm its determination to take all steps possible to oppose any form of illegal practice in our sport,” it stated.
“As education and prevention are the backbones of the UCI’s anti-doping policy, the ability to act on the riders’ entourage, particularly the younger members, is consequently one of the strategic priorities for the future.”
The rule will apply to those who have broken the UCI’s anti-doping regulations, and also the regulations of other organisations. It will also apply to medical doctors who the UCI said are ‘found by a court of law or other competent body to have been guilty of facts which can reasonably be considered to be equivalent to a violation of the UCI’s Anti Doping Rules.’
The UCI has also announced that henceforth, teams will bear the costs caused by doping affairs.
The new exclusion rule also applies to medical doctors found guilty of violating anti-doping rules.
An analysis plus some important questions about the new regulation can be found here: