Mercury & the UCI

[Anonymous]

This just put up by cyclocosm
http://bit.ly/gxF2EU

Fascinating reading.

(if not worthy of its own thread mod please merge into UCI corruption thread)

 

[Jamsque]

I just saw this too. I guess Verbruggen was just as much of a rat as McQuaid. The UCI is rotten to the core.

 

[veganrob]

Fascinating indeed. And very enlightening. The level of corruption was/is very deep.

 

[hrotha]

“I have given order to our legal department to take the tone of your approach into account when it comes to following up on your request”

I think I puked a little.

 

[Benotti69]

Wow great find.

again we see evidence of the UCI not giving a rats a$$ about riders.

 

[sniper]

McQuid insulting bloggers.
Not a smart move that was.

 

[thehog]

I think I puked a little.

I also vomitted a litte bit then swallowed it back up.

 

[veganrob]

I also vomitted a litte bit then swallowed it back up.

That's kinda gross. I am eating breakfast.

 

[Mellow Velo]

Conclusive proof that FLandis does indeed have credibilty.
Exactly what he claimed in the Kimmage transcript.

Hein, too busy lining his own wallet to be bothered with a few thou
owed to flat broke riders.
His attitude is both appalling and predictable.

 

[Roland Rat]

Terrible. They're above the law and they know it. We need a publication like the WSJ to really delve into this, but even then it wouldn't change anything. Those inside cycling have known how the UCI operates for years and haven't done anything about it, that won't change now.

 

[sniper]

I just saw this too. I guess Verbruggen was just as much of a rat as McQuaid. The UCI is rotten to the core.

It didn't take this new revelation to realize that.

 

[Anonymous]

It would be nice to see this story posted on the front page of the CN website.

Force McQuaid to answer some very tough questions. He will tell anyone who will listen how pure the UCI is. Perhaps these documents plastered in plain view will shine a light on something that needs to be exposed.

 

[BotanyBay]

The same-old truths as told by the same-old truth tellers. -Mark Fabiani

 

[Mrs John Murphy]

It would be nice to see this story posted on the front page of the CN website.

Force McQuaid to answer some very tough questions. He will tell anyone who will listen how pure the UCI is. Perhaps these documents plastered in plain view will shine a light on something that needs to be exposed.

Absolutely. But there is as much chance of that happening as there is of McQuaid admitting to being corrupt.

Not a good week for CN.

 

[BotanyBay]

McQuaid only talks to the media when he feels the need to communicate something. It's always from a position of power in his own favor. If they ask him a question that is out-of-bounds for him, like with Armstrong, the interview is over.

Hence, no matter what, he will not answer these kinds of questions. And his being in Switzerland, he knows that there is nothing that anyone can do about it. He leads a legal monopoly with virtually no chance of being investigated or prosecuted by anyone.

Reform at the UCI is not (and never will be) an option. Period.

That's not to say that the UCI can't be rendered irrelevant. It can be. Cyclists only need the UCI for access to the Olympic games, and this is where we have power. The Olympics are a corrupt farce too. A mere novelty. Sort of like the "NFL's Pro Bowl" or the NBA All-Star game.

 

[MacRoadie]

That's kinda gross. I am eating breakfast.

If it makes you feel any better vegan, it was a salad...

 

[Oldman]

Wordin's foray into the Euro market was frought with hubris. His attempt to gain entry into the ProTour level ranks included hiring Van Petegem and other "Euroclean" pros to bolster the UCI points to gain team status. Most of the US riders got stiffed in some way and the UCI didn't grant the team qualification that Wordin sought. The vacumn in US Pro cycling created by this benefitted a certain "Mr.." team more than others as well.

 

[Roland Rat]

McQuaid only talks to the media when he feels the need to communicate something. It's always from a position of power in his own favor. If they ask him a question that is out-of-bounds for him, like with Armstrong, the interview is over.

Hence, no matter what, he will not answer these kinds of questions. And his being in Switzerland, he knows that there is nothing that anyone can do about it. He leads a legal monopoly with virtually no chance of being investigated or prosecuted by anyone.

Reform at the UCI is not (and never will be) an option. Period.

That's not to say that the UCI can't be rendered irrelevant. It can be. Cyclists only need the UCI for access to the Olympic games, and this is where we have power. The Olympics are a corrupt farce too. A mere novelty. Sort of like the "NFL's Pro Bowl" or the NBA All-Star game.

+1.

What it needs is a concerted effort by ASO, AIGCP and WADA to tell the UCI to go play with themselves and form a breakaway series. It might be light on races for a couple of years depending on the contractual and political position between organisers (other than ASO), national bodies and the UCI, but it needs to be done.

The sad thing is, it won't be.

 

[Oldman]

+1.

What it needs is a concerted effort by ASO, AIGCP and WADA to tell the UCI to go play with themselves and form a breakaway series. It might be light on races for a couple of years depending on the contractual and political position between organisers (other than ASO), national bodies and the UCI, but it needs to be done.

The sad thing is, it won't be.

I have hope that ASO and the rider's would sieze the opportunity to do just that. I'm sure promoter's would relish an opportunity to move events away from the UCI as they pay dearly for the blessing of Saint Pat.

 

[BotanyBay]

+1.

What it needs is a concerted effort by ASO, AIGCP and WADA to tell the UCI to go play with themselves and form a breakaway series. It might be light on races for a couple of years depending on the contractual and political position between organisers (other than ASO), national bodies and the UCI, but it needs to be done.

The sad thing is, it won't be.

And this is why I think JV is disingenuous and FOS for spouting "change the sport from within". JV has found himself a nice little foothold. He knows the scam, knows the drill. Don't rock the boat, and don't pee in the soup. He's got his 'beener nice and secure, and he's "in"...
(image removed, under protest)

... and so long as he plays his politics right, he gets to earn a very nice living in the sport he loves. But make no mistake. He earns that living in the sewer, surrounded by rats. (no offense intended, Roland)
(image removed, under protest)

 

[Roland Rat]

I have hope that ASO and the rider's would sieze the opportunity to do just that. I'm sure promoter's would relish an opportunity to move events away from the UCI as they pay dearly for the blessing of Saint Pat.

But the responsibilty is not with and cannot be with the riders, there is too much at risk for them to take responsibility because if it doesn't come off, they are out of the game for good.

 

[bhilden]

The interesting question here is "How long did it take the European riders on the Mercury team to get their bank guarantee after the team folded?" I think people would find the answer to that question very enlightening.

 

[BotanyBay]

The opacity Rutherford complains about is as frustrating as ever, and his most serious allegation—that the UCI might not actually have a valid bank guarantee—turns out not to be so crazy.

Here's a question:

After the team ends, goes-away, etc... Does the UCI ever give the money back? I'm not talking about the teams that go Tango-Utah (bankrupt). I'm talking about the ones that die a natural death.

I'm wondering if the usual habit of the UCI was to keep that bank guarantee for themselves, and never hold it in escrow.

I doubt they've ever had escrow accounts.

 

[pnwrider]

I've known guys on domestic teams who've gotten payouts from the guarantee, but they generally try to hold out until the end of the season, because if the team doesn't replenish the funds, they are suspended from the UCI, and the riders can't race.

It's a really screwed up situation.

 

[BotanyBay]

It now appears that the bank guarantee paid to the UCI by the team, as required by rules relating to Pro Continental teams, is a counterfeit and that the money which was supposed to be deposited in the Brazilian bank was never lodged.

Read more: http://www.velonation.com/News/ID/6...counterfeit-bank-guarantee.aspx#ixzz1D0jrUg7U

That's the UCI's side of things. But for an organization with no obligation to be transparent, who's to say that the guarantee didn't go into McQuaid's villa on Lake Geneva?