Graham Dunbar, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Stumble Upon

del.icio.us

Digg

Facebook

Print

Email

Speak Up

GENEVA - Professional cycling declared a new era of unity and stability Thursday with the launch of a race calendar that groups elite events into a world ranking system for riders and teams.

The world calendar of 24 races consists of the three major tours of France, Italy and Spain; 10 stage races, including the season-opening Tour Down Under in Australia; and 11 one-day classics in Europe.

The co-ordinated series completes a peace deal between the International Cycling Union (UCI) and Amaury Sports Organization, owner of the Tour de France, after years of bitter arguments over the sport's future direction.

"Cycling has now regained its unity and harmony," UCI president Pat McQuaid said. "Cycling has experienced a very severe conflict over past recent years and it has caused the sport considerable harm."

The calendar was drawn up by a UCI-led working party that included race organizers, teams and the professional riders' union, the CPA.

"It represents the successful outcome of a genuinely collective effort," McQuaid said. "It takes into account the heritage of our sport as well as the legitimate ambitions of the global development of our sport."

Jean-Francois Pescheux, who represented ASO on the working group, said it was a perfect outcome for cycling.

"It was not possible while there was a war between (the UCI) and the organizers," he said. "I think we have found the best solution now."

The calendar offers guarantees to race organizers, sponsors and broadcasters that the 16 best teams will race at all the top events. Riders and teams will collect points for finishing positions in races and individual stages which will count toward the world rankings.

The rankings will be restricted to teams and riders participating in, and helping fund, the 5.2 million euros (C$8.5 million) biological passport anti-doping scheme that was introduced in cycling after a succession of drug scandals hit the sport.

The UCI hopes to create a buzz about the rankings similar to the system used in tennis by publishing the new standings each Monday after a race.

From 2011, the rankings are intended to decide which teams can enter the Tour de France, cycling's signature event.

The working party will continue to meet throughout the nine-month season - which starts Jan. 20 with the Australian race - to modify the world calendar for 2010.

McQuaid said it was important for cycling to present a united front when all sports are anticipating difficult financial times in the global economic downturn.

"The world calendar has come just at the right time," McQuaid said. "People are looking at cycling as a sport which is much more solid and stable.

"We have got a lot to offer in marketing and advertising."

CPA president Cedric Vasseur said the rankings were important to help build the best riders into star names, and must come with prize money by 2010.

"If we want cycling to come back we have to have the big stars again," he said. "We need that everybody is waiting for the classification every Monday.

"It is unacceptable to have the classification without any money. In all big sports, there is always money for the winner."

The pilot passport anti-doping scheme was created by the UCI and World Anti-Doping Agency. More than 850 riders gave a series of blood and urine samples that were used to create an individual body chemistry profile, so that suspected doping offences could be spotted in fluctuations from the athlete's known levels, rather than testing for and identifying illegal substances.

McQuaid said the first cases using information gathered in the passport scheme would be opened against riders "in the coming days and weeks."

"There won't be many," he said. "We would hope that with the improvements coming with the biological passport that doping is something the fans will be reading a lot less about."