Astana Makes Good On Financial Obligations, UCI Now Happy
Astana, the team of seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong, Alberto Contador, and Levi Leipheimer, have provided financial guarantees to the International Cycling Union (UCI) allowing them to retain their license, the sport’s governing body said on Wednesday.
The UCI had threatened to rescind the team’s Pro-Tour competition license after the team’s wages were reportedly not paid for two months but after the guarantees were given Astana can now carry on, starting with the Tour of Luxembourg which began on Wednesday evening.
Astana had been told to provide the bank guarantees by May 31 – the deadline extended for two days owing to a public holiday.
“The UCI has verified that Astana has fulfilled the conditions,” the organization said in a statement, one of those conditions being the fulfillment of outstanding sponsorship contracts.
It added it would keep a close eye on further developments.
The team, whose team leader is Spanish star Alberto Contador, last month publicized their financial dispute with key sponsors when they started the Tour of Italy’s seventh stage with new shirts and the sponsor’s name “Astana” virtually blocked out.
Armstrong will attempt, starting on July 4 to win an eighth Tour de France, which Contador won in 2007 with the Discovery Channel team before switching to Astana, who were banned from last year’s edition for doping offences before the team underwent substantial structural and personnel changes.
Categories: Features, News
Tags:
Hey, Ladies Only
Leave a Reply