Joel Blevin resigned after Team Bretagne-Schuller failed to secure a Tour de France wild card entry
Joel Blevin of Team Bretagne Schuller resigned from his post as the team’s president after the side failed to secure an invitation at the Tour de France 2012.
He noted in a letter sent to the team’s director, "We thought with our athletes' good results this season we would achieve a wild card ... Unfortunately it was not so”.
“I take responsibility for this failure, and therefore I present my resignation".
The French team was established back in 2005 and was funded by the automotive sponsor Michel Schuller.
It started as a continental team but was awarded with the UCI Professional Continental rank in 2011 season.
The team has always aimed at the top most level of the sport and riding all the top five French races have always been its biggest goal.
Paris-Nice, Paris-Roubaix, GP Plouay, Tour de France and the Criterium du Dauphine are the top priorities for the team.
Unfortunately, the team failed to secure an invitation at the Paris-Nice earlier on the season and has also missed an invitation for the Tour de France 2012.
The four teams to have achieved the wild card invitation for the French race include three French sides, Team Europcar, Team Cofidis, Team Saur Sojasun and one Dutch side, Team Argos-Shimano.
The executive board of cycling association has requested Joel to continue his services until the end of June, so that the team can build up a new strategy for the remaining part of the season.
"The Management agrees to make contact quickly with its partners to attempt to ensure the continuity of the team in the coming years", it stated in a letter.
“Armand Megret, the president of Breizh Vélo, an advocacy group in the Brittany region, said he "deeply regrets this unfortunately understandable decision".
The French team has filled its bag with a total number of five victories in the young season including the stage victories at the Tour du Haut, Tour De Normandie and the Criterium International.
Team Bretagne-Schuller also claimed overall victories at the Paris-Troyes and the Classic Loire Atlantique in the current season.
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