World Tour wild cards & MPCC membership : RCS Sport makes resistance
As every year, the MPCC makes a round up of the invitations sent out by WorldTour race organizers to ProTeams, whether or not they are members of our association.
In the 2023 season, the number of members coming from the second level of competition increased once again to 16 teams out of the 18 in this division. Only Eolo-Kometa and Bolton Equities-Black Spoke, who will be leaving the ProTeam level at the end of the season, have not yet joined. This has enabled the vast majority of races to have all their wild card teams members of the MPCC. It's also the result of the work our movement has been carrying out for several years to ensure that all invitations granted at the world's biggest races are awarded exclusively to teams involved in the fight against doping and committed to making cycling even more credible.
Out of the 196 invitations issued by the 35 WorldTour races, only 19 went to « non-MPCC » teams or national squads. For the fifth year running, the percentage of teams invited to WorldTour races remains above 90%. However, the trend seen in 2022 has went on in 2023, with the organizers of the UAE Tour, the Strade Bianche, Tirreno-Adriatico, Milan-San Remo, the Giro d'Italia and Il Lombardia inviting teams that have not yet joined us, such as the Tudor Pro Cycling Team, which made the wise choice of joining our movement on May 24.
These races are labelled "RCS Sport", which has still not made an MPCC membership, a prerequisite for an invitation, unlike Amaury Sport Organisation (owner of the Tour de France, Paris-Nice, Paris-Roubaix and the Critérium du Dauphiné) and Flanders Classics (organiser of the main Flanders classics, including the Tour of Flanders). Both organisers have reached 100% of MPCC wild cards this season.
Alongside the teams, the founders of our movement, and the riders, race organisers must also play their part and become player in the fight against doping. With this in mind, our movement hopes that RCS Sport, a linchpin in the WorldTour, will adhere to our philosophy and make future access to its races conditional on membership in the MPCC.
Be players in the fight
The Mouvement Pour un Cyclisme Crédible (MPCC) met in Paris on Tuesday 24 October, on the eve of the official presentation of the Tour de France 2024, for its annual General Meeting. Its members, following a 2023 season marked by a climate of latent suspicion, no longer want to be the only ones taking action. The MPCC is targeting January 1, 2024 for a greater awareness: the credibility of our sport depends on it.
At its Annual General Meeting, the MPCC set the scene for the 18th year of its existence, with a view to reflecting on how far it has come, talking about the present and, above all, the future. When the movement was created in 2007 in London, at the start of the Tour de France, cycling was surrounded by scandals. To enhance the credibility of their sport, a number of team managers, believing in the voluntary basis, decided to adopt stricter rules to complement those of the governing bodies. Today, 70% of first or second division teams are members of the MPCC.
Over the past 17 years, their commitment has always been driven by a strong will: to be a player in the fight against doping.
- This was the case when the MPCC played its role as whistleblower with the WADA on the subject of corticosteroids and tramadol.
- This was the case when, over a period of twelve years, the MPCC carried out more than 4,000 tests to prevent the misuse of corticosteroids, until they were banned by WADA.
- This was the case when the MPCC unreservedly supported the increase in budgets to support the work of the International Testing Agency (ITA).
- This was the case when the MPCC incorporated into its regulations the principle of self-suspension of a team after two positive cases in the last twelve months. The UCI adopted this rule.
- This was the case when the MPCC noted, each year, that its members complied 100% with a set of internal rules that had never changed a single line.
- This was the case from 2007 to 2023, and will continue.
All the members of the MPCC – teams, riders, staff, agents, federations, organisers, sponsors – are repeating it today:their determination will not be weakened.
- This was not the case when, in 2015, 2018 and 2019, two teams and two federations withdrew from the MPCC, disagreeing with the internal regulations on cortisol levels.
- This was not the case either when, in 2016, another member team failed to comply with the internal rule not to hire a rider who had been suspended for more than six months.
The top six teams in the UCI 2023 men’s world ranking, and the top three women’s teams, are not members of the MPCC. They are strongly encouraged to join the movement between now and 1 January. Several of their riders have already decided to commit themselves as individuals.
At the MPCC, we are active players. And even proactive.
The MPCC’s action is supported by the ITA. For 2024, it is proposing that the teams’ financial contribution to the ITA should no longer be a fixed fee, but indexed to each team’s budget, in a context where “two-speed cycling” is becoming established in terms of financial resources.
The MPCC is invited each year by the UCI to attend its Professional Cycling Council (PCC) as an observer. The MPCC also benefits unreservedly from the support of Tour de France Director Christian Prudhomme, who is determined each year to award his wild cards only to teams that are members of our movement.
The MPCC is continuing and will continue to commit to stricter rules to complement those of the authorities. To teams that are not members, we say: come on! Be a player! The persistent climate of latent suspicion requires action, forces to “keep the lights on” and demands commitment.
Over 600 riders and more than 400 team staff have joined the MPCC on a voluntary basis. To the others: come along too! To their employers: give them the freedom to commit to the MPCC according to their ethical and personal convictions.
So that the light doesn’t end up going out in the tunnel,
Be an active player in the fight!
The MPCC
Credibility Figures : 14 presumed cases...in 4 months
For the second publication, this year, of the "Credibility Figures", the MPCC took notice of the fifteen or so additional cases that have tainted professional cycling over the last four months. These revelations are a reminder of the extent to which the fight against doping must remain a constant in our sport.
Between May 1 and August 31, we identified almost 200 cases of suspected doping in sport, at national or international level, revealed by national agencies, federations or press articles. Athletics remains at the top of the list with almost a quarter of the cases. But this does not mean that this sport remains the "poor relation" in the fight against doping. The independent organisation Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) has been producing considerable work since it was founded in April 2017 to encourage athletes to play by the rules and deter cheats.
On a national scale, the large number of doping cases involving South African athletes in the last four months can be explained by greater transparency on part of SAIDS, the South African anti-doping agency, about the offences committed. This transparency remains the key to restoring the credibility of top-level sport.
In this respect, the MPCC took notice of fourteen new cases of alleged doping involving professional cyclists and support staff since April. Aggravating circumstance : four of them involved World Tour riders: Alex Baudin, Robert Stannard, Miguel Angel Lopez and Michel Hessmann. This is the first time in four years that so many cases involving riders from the world's elite level have come to light in such a short space of time. In 2019, there were five cases at this level (four of which were uncovered by the Aderlass police operation).
But looking in detail at the four cases that have come to light in recent months, we can see that two of them no longer belong to the same team since the test that triggered their disciplinary procedure. Miguel Angel Lopez was riding for a Continental team this season. The period incriminating the Colombian climber dates back to the building up to the 2022 Giro d'Italia, during his last year of competition with the World team Astana. As for Robert Stannard, the rider from Alpecin-Deceuninck (MPCC member) was notified by the UCI of the "use of prohibited methods and/or substances" during the 2018 and 2019 seasons. At the time, the Australian was riding for a World Team that was not an MPCC member : Mitchelton-Scott.
On July 31, Frenchman Axel Baudin has been given a precautionary suspension by his team AG2R-Citroën team, following the presence of tramadol detected during a test at the last Giro. His team, a founding member of the MPCC, thus applied one of the fundamental rules of our movement: withdrawing a rider from competitions as soon as a positive test is reported. Two weeks later, the German Michel Hessmann was also suspended by his team (Jumbo-Visma), following a positive out-of-competition test on 14 June by his country's national anti-doping agency (NADA).
Pending the outcome of the procedures, it would be hasty to draw conclusions about the World Tour on the basis of these latest revelations. But far from the recent rumours and suspicions, this significant increase in cases at the highest level of competition in 2023 is irrefutable (only one in 2022, none in 2021, two in 2020) and calls the MPCC to question. The riders’ health and the credibility of professional cycling are at stake. These revelations are a reminder of the soundness of the approach taken by our association, which is constantly committed to fairness and ethics in our sport. They also underline the responsibility of riders, managers and team staff to play their part in the fight against doping. In this respect, we salute the sixteen women's teams that have already joined us over the last decade. The growing popularity of the UCI women's circuit is very good news for cycling, but it must also go along with safeguards such as the MPCC. Finally, we encourage non-member professional teams and their riders to join us.
La Vuelta startlist : following on from the Tour
Last Grand Tour of the season, the Vuelta featured in Barcelona thirteen teams that are members of the MPCC. As in the Tour de France, nine WorldTour team members and four ProTeams have taken the start of the race.
Fifty-three riders entered in the race last week, as individual members. This is roughly the same figure as that of the Grande Boucle, at the end of June.
The MPCC would like to pay tribute to the long-standing commitment of Caja Rural - Seguros RGA. The team managed by Juan Manuel Hernandez was one of the first ProTeams (formerly Continental Pro) to join us ten years ago. The other Spanish invited team, Burgos-BH, also committed to MPCC, in 2018, two years before being promoted to second division.
It should also be pointed out that the four Spanish ProTeams (Burgos-BH, Caja Rural - Seguros RGA, Kern Pharma and Euskaltel-Euskadi) are all members of our movement. This is a sign of the determination of Iberian structures to restore credibility to cycling’s supporters and audience.
Of the 176 riders who started the Vuelta, only one has been suspended in the past – this rider is not part of a MPCC team. The movement is thus reiterating its teams' commitment, not to recruit any riders who have been involved in doping cases for which they have been suspended for more than six months.
Tour de France 2023 digest : riders on the offense
In the wake of the Tour de France 2023, which saw Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma) crowned for the second time, the MPCC is delighted to have seen a number of its individual members take part in action for the three weeks of racing.
Our association would first congratulate the three stage winners who are members of our movement on a voluntary basis : Jordi Meeus, Felix Gall and Jai Hindley. The Bora-Hansgrohe team’s leader won Stage 5 in Laruns, his first victory on the roads of the Tour. The Australian climber also wore the precious yellow jersey for the first time in his career. In contention for a podium until stage 13, Jai Hindley finished his first « Grande Boucle » in seventh place.
Felix Gall, another newcomer, also added a victory on the Tour to his palmares by winning the queen stage (Stage 17), marked by the Col de la Loze climb. The Austrian rider from the AG2R-Citroën team, a member of the MPCC, ranked eighth in the final overall classification.
Other riders of our movement were also particularly aggressive, including Thibaut Pinot, Guillaume Martin, Tiesj Benoot, Ben O'Connor and Victor Campenaerts, elected most aggressive rider. In a particularly demanding edition, around 70% of the MPCC riders who started the race in Bilbao managed to slip into breakaways at least once.
Finally, we are delighted with the prestigious success achieved by Jordi Meeus on the Champs-Elysées. Like his leader Jai Hindley, the Belgian sprinter was taking part in his first Tour de France.
We would like to remind that joining the MPCC, whether as a team or as a rider, is a commitment to cycling – a commitment to abide by rules that are stricter that those of the international bodies. We encourage other teams and other riders, to join us in promoting a sport that remains as popular as ever and is constantly seeking credibility with the general public.
A roundup of the Tour de France Femmes
For the second Tour de France Femmes, the number of women’s teams members of the MPCC which take part in the race remains at ten, including six Women’s World Teams : EF Education – Tibco SVB, FDJ – Suez, Fenix-Deceuninck, Human Powered Health, Team DSM-Firmenich ans Uno-X Pro Cycling Team. Thus, 40% of women’s elite cycling has already joined us.
The other four members, from Continental level, are Cofidis Women Team, Saint-Michel-Mavic-Auber 93, Team Arkea and Team Coop-Hitec Products.
We are also counting 15% of Tour de France Femmes field as individual members of our association. In a peloton more and more outlined in the media, we encourage team managers to spur their riders to join our movement, for the credibility of our sport. We would like to remind that our members (team managers, riders, medical staffs or riders’ representatives) are at the forefront of the fight against doping.
Among those riders who are with us, we have Juliette Labous, 2nd in the Giro Donne a few weeks ago ; Alison Jackson, who won the Paris-Roubaix Femmes last spring ; Lorena Wiebes ; two-time stage winner in the first edition of the Tour ; and Evita Muzic ; French road champion in 2021.
A roundup of the 2023 Tour de France starting lineup
Within few hours from the Tour de France start, the MPCC is making a large roundup of riders and teams taking part in the race.
The 2023 Tour de France will start today from the Basque country with 13 teams, members of the MPCC, out of the 22 participating in the race. From the 176 riders starting in Bilbao, 52 engaged to the MPCC on a voluntary basis and 10 of them are former stage winners at the Tour.
Thus, around 30% of the Tour 2023 peloton has formally committed to cleaner cycling. This rate gradually increased over the years but is still not sufficient to promote a better image of our sport. The MPCC still fosters its team managers and their technical staff prompting their riders to join the movement.
All teams which have been granted a wild card by A.S.O., the race organiser, are also stakeholders of the MPCC. Among them, Uno-X Pro Cycling Team is one of our new members. The Norwegian team will take part in the Tour de France for the first time in its history, after joining the MPCC at the beginning of the 2022. Christian Prudhomme, the Tour race director, has always emphasised his determination to push teams committed to our movement.
Nevertheless, only one rider from this year starting lineup has been suspended for not complying with antidoping rules and during a six-month minimum duration.
The MPCC recalls the engagement of its teams, respected since then, to not hire riders involved in any doping case which have led to a suspension that exceeded six months.
Tudor Pro Cycling Team joins the MPCC
Swiss team Tudor Pro Cycling, squad from the ProTeam level, has become a provisional member of the MPCC. The membership has been granted at the last governing body's meeting on May 24.
Its CEO Raphaël Meyer states : « Our team Tudor Pro Cycling Team officially joins the MPCC, in order to support the fight against doping. We commit ourselves to stick to the rules of the MPCC movement. »
Founded in 2018 as Swiss Cyling Academy, Tudor Pro Cycling Team reached the second level of our sport this season, at the initiative of the former multiple-classics winner Fabian Cancellara. The Swiss team gathers 20 riders including Sébastien Reichenbach (ex Groupama-FDJ rider) and Simon Pellaud (ex Trek-Segafredo rider).
Tudor Pro Cycling Team is currently the 16th out of the 18 ProTeams to bond to the MPCC movement.
Gino Mäder has passed away
Gino Mäder tragically passed away on Friday following a serious crash on the roads of the Tour de Suisse on Thursday afternoon.
The MPCC and its members, shocked by this terrible loss, offer their full support to the Swiss rider's loved ones, family and team.
Fifth in the 2021 Vuelta a España, Gino Mäder had joined our movement as an individual on January 20, 2020, while racing for the NTT Pro Cycling team. The entire cycling family mourns the loss of a rider committed to responsible sport.
Credibility figures: transparency is gaining ground
Since the beginning of the year, an average of 55 procedures per month have been revealed in top-level sport. This figure has been rising steadily for two years.
While more and more international federations are making public the anti-doping procedures undertaken in their disciplines, some national anti-doping agencies remain very quiet on the issue. This is no longer the case for NADA India or ADAK Kenya, which have recently made the choice to be transparent. These revelations obviously have a strong impact on our barometer, which we have published several times a year since 2014. At the end of the first four months of 2023, India is in first place for the first time, in terms of the number of cases revealed, ahead of the usual "leaders": Russia and the United States.
The large number of procedures reported has forced us to analyse each one on a case-by-case basis - as we only include procedures related to high-level or professional athletes, revealed by federations, anti-doping agencies, the courts or the media. Since 2018, we have included cases of fraud and corruption that concern the staff who are involved with athletes, but also match-fixing that may implicate athletes directly.
So far, there have only been three proceedings revealed by the UCI website, concerning continental road teams (Portuguese and Italian). Two of the three riders involved are former World Team and Pro Team members who had signed a contract with a lower level team.
None of the cases revealed involved an MPCC member team. Our movement includes 40 first and second division pro teams (men and women) and only 16 continental teams. We strongly encourage these semi-professional teams to join the MPCC, in order to put their ethics and credibility at the heart of our sport.
