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The steady demise of the British domestic racing scene continues, as UCI continental squad Ribble Weldtite confirmed yesterday that it will be folding at the end of the year.
Founded in 2017, the team – which has produced pros such as EF Education-EasyPost’s James Shaw and former Eolo–Kometa rider John Archibald – registered with the UCI in 2019, a year before bike maintenance manufacturer Weldtite joined as co-sponsor.
However, according to an email sent this week to riders and staff, advising them to seek other opportunities, sponsorship and funding issues have led to the team’s untimely demise, making Ribble Weldtite the third British-based UCI Continental squad to drop out of the sport since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Sports director and former individual pursuit world champion Colin Sturgess explained to Cycling Weekly that a funding shortfall of between £50,000 and £80,000 – caused, the email claimed, due to the current economic uncertainty and the impact of Brexit on British manufacturers – has made ensuring the team’s future an impossible task.
Sad times. But a sincere thank you to @RibbleWeldtite Jack & Tom, all the staff, sponsors and last but by no means least, the amazing riders that I’ve been honoured to work with. I hope I’ve taught you swear profusely in many languages ❤️ https://t.co/41ppUfJhqV
— Col Sturgess (@ColinASturgess) October 18, 2022
“A little bit before the Tour of Britain, we all had a message from Tom [Timothy, general manager] which said, ‘Guys, just a heads up that there’s a fairly sizable shortfall in sponsorship for next year so you know, just be mindful that we’ll be looking for replacement sponsors’,” he said.
“We went into the race with that in mind, looking for a result and Jack [Rees, operations director] and Tom were working in the background to try to plug this shortfall if you will.
“Nobody wants to see the guys without a ride, I think most of the lads have managed to secure something but it’s just bloody difficult when there are only two or three conti teams around.”
And then there were three.
Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling will fold at the end of the season, ten years after it began.
That leaves just three British men’s UCI Continental teams. As recently as 2019 there were six. https://t.co/HmmwBgdVta
— The British Continental (@BritishConti) October 18, 2022
The British Continental has reported that several of the team’s riders have secured a place on other teams, both home and abroad, for 2023:
While Harry Tanfield is rumoured to be joining a Dutch team.
DS Col Sturgess also has a team sorted for next year.
/3
— The British Continental (@BritishConti) October 18, 2022
Such a shame to hear the news today about @RibbleWeldtite. The team were always very friendly and accommodating to us whenever we wanted to speak to them
Those orange helmets will be sorely missed
— The TT Podcast 🚴 (@ttpdcst) October 18, 2022
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