UCI commissaire Guy Dobbelaere has said that riders may be fined for riding on footpaths at Saturday’s Omloop Het Nieuwsblad.
A number of riders in the front groups including race winner Greg van Avermaet (BMC Racing), Peter Sagan (Bora-hansgrohe) and Sep Vanmarcke (Cannondale-Drapac) could be seen riding on the footpath alongside the cobbled section at Karel Martelstraat with 49 kilometres left to race. This was despite riders being told before the race that it was forbidden to ride on the paths.
Riders in a following group were forced to ride on the cobbles when a UCI commissaire blocked their way on the footpath.
Trek-Segafredo’s Edward Theuns took to Twitter afterwards to express his frustration saying: “So before the race they say that if they find images of riding in a bike path they will dsq you… so…???? @UCI_cycling #bullsh*t”
Dobbelaere has since said that the UCI are reviewing the incident and a report is being prepared.
“Disqualifying them would have been too much,” he told Sporza. “I can certainly understand the criticism. The chasers were unfortunate that there was a commissaire near them. There will be a report prepared which will be sent to the UCI. They could still face a fine.”
#bloodycyclists
does it state it anywhere that they can’t?
I totally agree! The Spring Classics ARE what they are… And riders should respect the given roads albeit I do realize that these are awful ones on a bike… :-p
Get a grip !!
If you do want them on the CYCLE path then block it.
FFS this is Belgium, the centre of the cycling universe, its always been this way.
Forbidding them to ride on a bike path sounds like a huge stupidity – but if they actually were told before the race not to do so… well…
im so glad they didnt have disc too as they would have not also broke laws but also died!
The race briefings were clear. Ride on the road – not the paths. Failure to abide by the rule will result in disqualification. They were not blocked by a commissaire, but hte following peleton was – hence the problem. Once again – inconsistent rule enforcement. They were not disqualified. I suppose they could, if rules allowed, ban them from the next start or 2 like can happen in soccer or rugby – but this is not soccer or rugby thankfully.