Astana team manager, Yvon Sanquer, had agreed to waive the ProTour team’s right to participate in Paris-Roubaix this April. The team announced that they had previously discussed the situation with race organizers, the Amaury Sports Organization, and wanted to clarify that their absence on the list of teams was a mutual decision as VeloNation had questioned.
The Kazakh team told the ASO that the team currently does not have specialists to contest the cobbled classic dubbed “Hell of the North”, so it would rather give the opportunity to one of the deserving Pro Continental teams who would relish the opportunity. Jean François Pescheux accepted this decison and will adjust accordingly with an additional wild card invitation.
A 2008 agreement with the UCI has guaranteed all ProTour teams at that time invitations to ASO events barring any situations that would risk the reputation of their races.
While the move by Sanquer for 2010 shows a lot of class, he said it is a one-time decision and he expects to field a strong Astana team in next year’s edition of the race.