Ineos Grenadiers staff proprietor Jim Ratcliffe has known as for skilled cyclings’ governing our bodies to take “actual motion” to enhance security after the Itzulia Basque Nation high-speed crash and different race incidents which have left plenty of riders out of motion and Tour de France winner Jonas Vingegaard reportedly nonetheless in hospital in Spain.
Ineos Grenadiers have been one of many driving forces within the creation of SafeR (SafeRoadcycling), the unbiased entity created and funded by the game’s stakeholders to enhance race, and Ratcliffe is the primary staff proprietor to publish an open letter about security.
Cyclingnews has been instructed there’s actual anger in some components of the game that politics and staff rivalries are slowing the method of bettering security.
Jaap Van Hulten has solely just lately been appointed the CEO of SafeR, whereas Michael Rogers just lately left the UCI after taking part in a key function within the creation of SafeR. Van Hulten has left his function as Chief Operations Officer at Visma-Lease a Bike staff to turn into the CEO of SafeR however will solely begin to work on Might 1.
Cyclingnews understands that SafeR has began to carry weekly conferences and apparently mentioned the Itzulia Basque Nation crash on Thursday however has nonetheless to formally start the massive activity of bettering race security, which is anticipated to start for the 2025 season.
Ratcliffe’s open letter requires extra motion with out specifying what needs to be executed.
“In Method 1, when Ayrton Senna had his deadly crash 30 years in the past in Italy, the governing physique got down to remodel the protection rules of one of many world’s most harmful sports activities and considerably diminished accidents consequently. This contrasts starkly with biking. As just lately as final week, we had yet one more horrific crash involving three of the world’s prime cyclists,” Ratcliffe stated in an open letter printed by the Ineos Grenadiers groups.
The UCI and different stakeholders answerable for race security have nonetheless to reply to Ratcliffe’s name for motion.
Ratcliffe accepted that skilled athletes are “all the time going to push issues” and recalled how Chirs Froome and Egan Bernal suffered main accidents whereas respectively learning a time trial course on the 2019 Critérium du Dauphiné and in coaching in Colombia.
“Cyclists are all the time going to push issues to the restrict as they’re elite sportsmen and that’s the reason motion is so vital,” Ratcliffe wrote, highlighting the function SafeR could make.
“In June, the UCI introduced the formation of SafeR, a specialist entity to supervise all points of biking security. For the primary time, the game can have a devoted security physique whose sole concern is to make the game safer, lowering the dangers to riders and spectators while dropping not one of the thrill of racing.
“That is what Method 1 has executed so effectively over the previous 30 years and I’d hope that we’ll now see the identical in biking.
“I applaud the UCI for taking the problems on board and agreeing to help the institution of SafeR. We now have to see actual motion to make sure the protection of the game.”
Earlier than final weekend’s Paris-Roubaix races, UCI President David Lappartient known as on everybody within the sport to return collectively for the great of the game.
“Security is clearly an important subject for the game in the mean time, for the UCI and for all of the totally different stakeholders,” Lappartient instructed Cyclingnews, understanding the game has to behave.
“I’ve seen all of the debates about gear, new know-how, earpieces, and so forth. There’s nonetheless loads to know. But it surely’s time to behave and enhance race security.
“We have to have plenty of small security features. That’s what the riders need and that’s what we’ll work on, all of us must work collectively on this.”
