Peter Hawkins (above) has been with IG Sigma Sport for two years and Ryan Mullen (homepage photo) spent his first year with the UK-based outfit this year. Both Irish internationals have thankfully secured places for next year as news of their employer's collapse has emerged.
One of the most recognisable and successful teams on the British circuit for many years, IG Sigma Sport has confirmed the rumour that it is disbanding with immediate effect.
The Continental-ranked squad counted Irish riders Peter Hawkins and Ryan Mullen in its line-up this year but both riders have thankfully already found new squads for next year.
World class time trial rider Mullen, who was 7th in the U23 World TT Championships in Italy in September, revealed last month that he was moving to An Post-Chainreaction for the coming season.
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Hawkins, who has been with IG Sigma Sport for two years - the first team to give him a pro contract - has just announced he will be riding with UK-based Madison Genesis next year.
The teams both Irish riders are moving to are Continental-ranked squads and will offer Mullen and Hawkins a platform to move up to bigger outfits if they get the results that would lead to such a promotion.
While Mullen is tipped by many for great things, having ridden so well on the international stage for Ireland in recent years, Hawkins just last week told stickybottle he still felt he could develop further as a bike rider and get a place with a bigger team.
Hawkins was very unlucky this year when he crashed out of the An Post Rás on stage three with the yellow jersey on his back.
Mullen is one of the best testers in the world at U23 level, and having taken two bronze medals at the European Track Championships this year, he looks likely to progress much further very quickly and could land some very big prizes against the watch – both on the track and road – in the near future.
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Like many larger teams based in Continental Europe that have folded or hit serious financial difficulties in recent months, IG Sigma Sport said it was unable to find a title sponsor for next year and so had become unsustainable.
It said in a statement it was departing the sport with great regret after over a decade of aggressive racing.
IG Markets told the team in mid September that after sponsoring it for the past two seasons it was ending the arrangement. At that point management began a search for a new backer but that ultimately proved unsuccessful.
While there was a lot of interest from some companies, the team said it was unable to secure the type of deal needed to fully fund the team in 2014. Management has not lost hope of competing again and said it would use the coming year to continue the search for the right sponsor in the hope of returning in 2015.
Managing director of Sigma Sport, Ian Whittingham said the hope was to come back as a UCI Continental ranked team again.
“It’s sad to see the team come to an end after so many years but we are certainly going out on a high after a great performance at the Tour of Britain this year,” he said.
He thanked the riders, staff and sponsors for the commitment that made it possible for the squad to have such a “memorable and rewarding time” in the peloton in the UK and further afield.
He revealed the team had very nearly secured the backing of Ford for next year. While the company’s executives in the UK were very keen, the proposal stalled when European executives had to sign off on it.
Whittingham said he had been “overwhelmed” by the support shown by everyone in the sport following the team's confirmation of its departure for now.
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