Rule change could pave way for McQuaid

UCI President Pat McQuaid was last night at the centre of more controversy when it emerged that a rule change could boost his chances of getting re-elected to the most high powered position in the sport.

In what appears to be an extraordinary attempt to shift the goalposts midway through the current contest, the Malaysian federation has proposed an amendment to Article 51 of the UCI constitution which seems to raise the likelihood of McQuaid serving another term in office.

Despite a current rule being in place which states that the presidential candidates must be nominated by their national federations, the Malaysian federation’s amendment proposes that candidates should instead be able to be proposed by any two federations.

And in line with that, the Moroccan and Thai federations have said that McQuaid is now a member, and has their backing.

While this rule change will be voted upon at the UCI congress, it would be backdated if successfully introduced. This would mean that the amendment would lend to the current election campaign, which has already passed the standard closing date for nominations.

Meanwhile, former cyclist Erik Zabel has resigned from the Professional Cycling Council after admitting to “many years” of doping, the UCI has confirmed.