Luis Carlos Amorim Tavares rolls off the stage(Image credit: Luis Barbosa)
The riders from Scott-Marcondes have some fun before stage 3.(Image credit: Luis Barbosa)
Luciano A. Pagliarini (Scott Marcondes) celebrates his third stage win of the race(Image credit: Scott Marcondes)
The UCI has suspended the Scott-Marcondes Cesar-São José dos Campos team from competitive action from August 20 until further notice. The withdrawal of a number of sponsors has caused severe financial difficulties for the Brazilian team, and it had been struggling to pay its riders.
The team’s suspension from activity comes on the back of complaints from some of its riders that they were owed outstanding wages. Star rider Luciano Pagliarini publicised the issue in June by skipping the Brazilian national championships in protest.
In a statement released yesterday, the Continental team said that it is “undergoing a complete overhaul for the remainder of the season and may not take part in any events until this situation is resolved.”
The team also claimed that before the announcement of the UCI suspension, it had already decided internally not to compete in any events until issues such as the lack of funds for travel and its inability to pay wages had been addressed.
“The team will break with some sponsors who have not fulfilled their financial responsibility,” the statement continued. “The team’s priority is to resolve the issue of riders’ expenses, before deciding whether or not to continue.”
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Barry Ryan is Head of Features at Cyclingnews. He has covered professional cycling since 2010, reporting from the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia and events from Argentina to Japan. His writing has appeared in The Independent, Procycling and Cycling Plus. He is the author of The Ascent: Sean Kelly, Stephen Roche and the Rise of Irish Cycling’s Golden Generation, published by Gill Books.
