Team Euskaltel-Euskadi positive to retain its World Tour status
With 18 years of professional experience, Team Euskaltel-Euskadi management have enough understanding of the sport to ride the top level of the sport.
The team has applied for an extension of its World Tour license and the application is based on strong financial statement including a slight change in the team’s hiring philosophy.
The team is famous for hiring only the Basque Country’s cyclists but it has shown flexibility in its recruiting process as several foreign riders are now included in the team’s 2013 squad.
Amets Txurruka was the first victim of the team’s new ideology when the cyclist failed to secure a contract with the team after dedicating his six years with the side.
The domestique was a victim of the UCI points system as he never had enough points in his bag to help his case and the Team Management had to let go off him.
“It is true that I did not expect my departure and I was a bit surprised that I had to leave the team,” he told Marca.
“I had no points and he wasn't counting on me. He was within his rights because my contract was also coming to an end”.
“He made that decision and I have no choice but to accept it”.
Team Manager Gonzalez de Galdeano noted that the only reason why he has opened the team for the foreign cyclists because he is aware of the fact that the team can soon lose even its professional continental status if it does not welcomes the overseas talent,
like any other professional team.
"We will value Basque riders first and foremost; the team's leaders will be Basque. The foreign riders we will take on will serve to fill up the team's deficits," he voiced.
The Spanish team currently holds the 13th overall position after the UCI World Tour team’s rankings with as many 555 points to his credit.
The squad will be in direct competition with Team Ag2r-La Mondiale, Team Argos-Shimano and Team Saxo Bank-Tinkoff Bank.
One out of the four teams is likely to miss out on the World Tour status for the 2013 season, the decision however is still to be made.
The team is willing to sign as many as ten new cyclists to strengthen its squad for the new season and three cyclists have already joined the team.
Gari Bravo of Team Caja Rural, Jon Aberasturi of Team Orbea and Ricardo Mester of Team Carmin-Prio have pledged their future seasons with the team while Alan Pérez, Amets Txurruka, Iván Velasco, Pierre Cazaux and Víctor Cabedo will be leaving the team by
the end of 2012 season.
The final list of 18 cyclists to represent the Team in the coming season includes, Samuel Sanchez, Igor Anton, Mikel Nieve, Los Hermanos Ion y Gorka Izagirre, Mikel Landa and Romain Sicard.
Egoi Martinez, Pello Bilbao, Gorka Verdugo, Pablo Urtasun, Mikel Astarloza, Juanjo Oroz, Miguel Mínguez, Rubén Perez, Jorge Azanza, Ricardo García and Adrián Sáez de Arregi will also represent the team in the season ahead.
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