Team Sky left out of Montepaschi Strade Bianche
Team Sky has not been invited to this year's Montepaschi Strade Bianche one-day race in Italy.
The British team learnt they had been left off the start list by organisers RCS when they read the news on the internet.
Fourteen teams were named, only half of which are World Tour teams. Five of the other teams invited are from Italy, while American Professional Continental Team Type 1 got an invite as did Geox-TMC.
Team Sky were surprised by their omission as Thomas Lövkvist won in 2009 and was second last year. Astana has also been left off the start list after Maxim Iglinskiy won last year.
Other teams missing out include Katusha, Quick Step, Rabobank and Saxo Bank.
The 190km race is ranked 1.1 on the European Tour, but in it's five-year history has became an instant classic and is ridden by the worlds best teams. It takes place on March fifth.
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Thank you for reading 20 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Join now for unlimited access
Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Founded in 1891, Cycling Weekly and its team of expert journalists brings cyclists in-depth reviews, extensive coverage of both professional and domestic racing, as well as fitness advice and 'brew a cuppa and put your feet up' features. Cycling Weekly serves its audience across a range of platforms, from good old-fashioned print to online journalism, and video.
-
Chinese X-Lab vies for global domination as it equips XDS Astana with bikes for the WorldTour
A new partnership sees Astana aboard new bikes with increased funding for 2025
By Joe Baker Published
-
Tech of the week: Van Rysel releases an aero bike (quelle surprise!) plus a superlight carbon crankset from FSA, a long top tube bag from Tailfin and tyre liners from Zefal
The RCR-F aero bike will be ridden by the Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale team in 2025, but will it create headlines like the RCR?
By Luke Friend Published