Rabobank pullout hits Australian cyclists

19 Oct 2012, 9:47 pm   -   Source: AAP

Four Australian cyclists are affected by Rabobank's decision to no longer sponsor the Dutch super team.

The fallout from the Lance Armstrong doping case continues to hit Australian cycling hard, with the careers of four riders now apparently in limbo.

Mark Renshaw, Graeme Brown, Jack Bobridge and David Tanner all have contracts with Dutch super team Rabobank, who now must find a new title sponsor.

The future of the team itself is uncertain after Rabobank announced they were ending their long-time sponsorship of the men's and women's squads at the end of this year.

"Rabobank has come to this decision following publication of the report from the American doping authority USADA last week. This report speaks volumes," the bank said in a statement.

Bobridge and Tanner have only joined the team in the last few weeks.

Renshaw said on Twitter he had "no idea" what was going on with the team now, while Scottish professional David Millar savaged the bank for the decision.

"You were part of the problem. How dare you walk away from your young clean guys who are part of the solution. Sickening," Millar tweeted.

It came on the same day that Cycling Australia vice president Stephen Hodge resigned because of his doping history.

He has revealed he took banned substances about 20 years ago, during the last six years of his professional career.

That was two days after CA sacked Matt White from a part-time role - he also admitted to doping during his time as a pro cyclist.

"This, of course, is a very sad day for CA - another one, regrettably," CA president Klaus Mueller said of Hodge's resignation.

"We lose on the board his very skilled input.

"But given the very strong stand that CA takes in relation to the question of doping, there is only one path for Steve to take."

Mueller said he wants the CA board to consider an independent investigation of their high-performance program, to ensure there are no other nasty surprises.

Last week, the US Anti-Doping Agency made public a large body of evidence it has compiled against Armstrong.

He is facing a life ban after deciding not to contest the charges, but strongly denies he doped and has called the case a witch hunt.

"The board is committed to making all proper enquiries of anyone involved in our high-performance program and within CA, to see that they are in fact free of any such conduct," Mueller said.

"It might be more appropriate they be conducted by someone independent, someone outside CA, so that it can be absolutely free of bias."

Mueller admits a terrible week for the sport could have commercial consequences.

"In relation to prospective sponsors, I have no doubt at all it makes our task harder," he said.

He also indicated they would be very selective about who replaces White in the role of liaising with the Australian men's pro riders.

"The board would prefer to put on a second- or third-rate replacement for Matt White, a person who doesn't have all the skills ... rather than take any chance that they are implicated in doping," Mueller said.

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