The Portuguese Association of Professional Cyclists (APCP) has threatened to file a complaint with the International Cycling Union (UCI) if some organizers of competitions in Portugal continue to fail to pay premiums owed to cyclists.
“The Portuguese Association of Professional Cyclists is considering filing a complaint with the International Cycling Union and a judicial complaint against the organizers who continue without paying the prizes to the runners of the years 2018, 2019 and 2021,” read a statement from the organization. sent to the Lusa agency. .
In the same statement, the APCP announced that it reached an agreement with Global Media for the payment of premiums for the GP Jornal de Notícias 2022, which will be paid in installments until the end of 2023.
“It also reached an agreement with the company Podium before the start of the last Tour of Portugal for the payment of the prizes for the 2022 Tour edition, which will be paid at the end of September,” the association states.
Speaking to TSFPaulo Couto, president of the APCP clarifies that “the organizer has up to three months after the race to pay all the prizes.”
“Otherwise, you have to present a bank guarantee at the beginning of the race to be able to be activated. Therefore, just as you have to pay the referees, as you have to pay the structures to the doctors, to the teams, the subsidies daily, the runners also have to receive these prizes and have these deadlines to receive them ”, he adds.
Paulo Couto explains that there are premiums due since 2018. The Cycling Federation is negotiating with the organizers, but, for now, there is only an agreement with two of them to pay the premium due last year.
“We have made efforts with the organizations and it was the case of the Volta a Portugal and now also of the Grande Prêmio Jornal de Notícias, which will now begin on the 2nd, in which we reached an agreement with these two entities to pay the Hay prizes. other delays [entidades] 2018, 2019 and 2021 and honestly it is a scandal that the runners have these awards in arrears ”, he defends.
The amounts owed reach a few tens of thousands of euros, which may seem little to some, but, says Paulo Couto, it is a lot for those who are waiting for the prize.
“It makes a lot of difference because it is an extra income that they have to the salary, which in the vast majority of cases is little more than a minimum wage, so that money at the end of the year is very important for the family economy for every cyclist,” he adds. .
In addition to supplementing salary, bonuses are also an incentive to step on the gas.
Source: TSF
