Pat McQuaid, the president of the Union Cycliste Internationale, says the Giro d’Italia’s un-vitation of Astanta, High Road Sports and two other UCI Pro Tour teams took the sport back ”20 years.”

Under the UCI Pro Tour format of the past few years, all Pro Tour teams were ensured a spot in the three grand tours — the Giro, the Tour de France and the Vuelta a Espana. But the long-term bickering among the grand tour organizers and the UCI prompted the organizers to branch out on their own this season while the UCI Pro Tour expands into places like Australia for the Tour Down Under.

According to cyclingnews.com, McQuaid told Agence France Press that he did not understand the exclusions of the four elite teams. “The organizer of Giro (RCS) knows the event is one of the greatest tests, but he does not include the best teams,” McQuaid is quoted as saying. “The 18 ProTour teams are the top 18 teams in the world. Ok, the organizers have the right to invite whom they please, but everyone knows there is a hierarchy of races and also of teams. … “In my opinion, it will be necessary to return to rules about participation. The organizer must have responsibilities for the organization for his race, not for the participation.”

McQuaid also lobbied for the inclusion of Astana in the Tour de France,  and said the team’s doping past under previous management should not be a factor because the team is now ”doing everything that is needed and doing even more. They should be given credit for that.”

Best of luck with that.

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