Andrew Talansky (Cannondale) has called for USA Cycling to work with the UCI to revoke the rule that prevents top riders from racing non-UCI events. Current regulations mean that riders from the WorldTour and Pro Continental circuits are barred from competing in national events unless they are part of a national team.
Talansky believes that it is the single biggest factor in the current difficulties that US racing is suffering at a grassroots level, and the removal of it would help the sport grow in the US.
“Whatever the UCI rule that exists that prohibits WorldTour riders from doing local US races is killing cycling in the US,” Talansky told Cyclingnews. “For me, that needs to be changed, and USA Cycling has done absolutely nothing to get that done. They’re letting grassroots cycling die in the US by preventing us from doing this.
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“I think that they’re alienating a lot of fans. The Tour of California is now the only race where they can come and see you in person, and if you can’t do that then maybe they won’t see you in person unless they can afford to come to Europe, and that’s bad for cycling.”
Speaking to Cyclingnews at a Cannondale altitude training camp in Tenerife, Talansky becomes impassioned when asked about the state of US cycling. Talansky, like most US pros, rose through the ranks of the domestic racing scene.
Talansky says that the rules were brought in to prevent big name riders taking away prize money from domestic riders, but he believes that wouldn’t be an issue.
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