A rider too many: UCI yanks Brunei Continental Team from Tour de Beauce
A last minute invitation to Canada's Bruno Langlois spelled expulsion
There was one team conspicuously absent from Friday’s split-stage 3a and 3b of the Tour de Beauce, as the UCI expelled Brunei Continental Team from the race for having fielded too many riders over the course of the season. The oblivious culprit? Canadian Bruno Langlois.
Just before the race began, Brunei added 2016 national road champion Langlois to its four-rider squad. This, unfortunately, meant that he was the 17th rider to race for a team that rules allow only 16 in a season.
#TourDeBeauce
L’ÉQUIPE BRUNEI CONTINENTAL CYCLING RETIRÉE DU TOUR DE BEAUCE //BRUNEI CONTINENTAL CYCLING TEAM WITHDRAWN FROM TOUR DE BEAUCEhttps://t.co/hiG3knVVz0 pic.twitter.com/ZtUG1qLrT0
— Tour de Beauce (@TourDeBeauce) June 21, 2019
The UCI has regulations pertinent to the maximum number of riders that can be added to a roster in a given season. The late addition exceeded that number.
— Tour de Beauce (@TourDeBeauce) June 21, 2019
Langlois was in Stage 1’s breakaway and finished fourth in Saint-Georges, while new British teammate James Jobber came 74. Another Belgian teammate did not finish. Brunei Continental Cycling Team also has riders from Brunei, South Africa, the United States of America, Greece, Indonesia, Malaysia and Turkey.
After Friday’s two stages, the field is down to 94 riders. Canada’s recent winner of the GP Saguenay Nicolas Zukowsky leads the race but is tied on time with Ty Magner (USA/Rally UHC). James Piccoli won the second stage in Lac-Mégantic and sits fifth, 14-seconds in arrears of Zukowsky. The race hits the city streets of Québec on Saturday and finishes in Saint-Georges on Sunday.
