Having fought many battles on the bike and won, Sean Kelly is now fighting for the survival of his An Post-Chainreaction team. He says time is running out but they are determined to keep working in the hope of securing the team's future for next year (Photo: David Pintens Photography)
Sean Kelly seeking new sponsor for An Post Chainreaction
Having made a terrific contribution to Irish cycling, especially the development of young riders; Sean Kelly’s An Post-Chainreaction team is now battling to survive.
Kelly has told stickybottle that he and the rest of the management only have 10 days - at a push two weeks - to save the team.
And if they can’t come up with a title sponsor, or possibly two, the team will not proceed next year.
The necessary documentation to apply to be part of the 2018 peloton must be lodged with the UCI by the end of October.
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However, it will take some time to prepare it if, as the Irish cycling community hopes, a new sponsor can be found.
So it means time is of the essence and the pressure is on now that An Post has ended its backing of the Continental level team.
An Post, Ireland's national postal service, has backed the team from the time it went Continental in 2008.
It has also been a major supporter of sportives in Ireland and the Irish men's and women's national tours; the Rás and Rás na mBan.
But, now facing challenging times of its own, An Post has ended all of its cycling sponsorships this year.
And while Chainreaction has also been a sponsor of Kelly's team in recent years, An Post has been there longest and has been the backbone of the team's financial support.
Two great lads who brought home the bacon and a shed load of high-quality TV exposure for the team's sponsors - Sam Bennett and Stephen Gallagher. Above, Bennett wins a stage of the Tour of Britain in 2013. And Gallagher in yellow taking victory in The Big One; outright Rás winner 2008.
In a very honest interview in which he pulled no punches, Sean Kelly said he was working hard to get the project over the line for next year.
But he was also clear that time was running out and that if a new backer was to be found, it must happen immediately.
“It’s been harder than I thought,” Kelly said of the search for new sponsors. “I had a few possibilities but as I went through them; I thought it would happen easier.
“We maybe started (the search) too late; perhaps waited a bit too long with not getting working on it earlier in the year. That probably was one of my problems.”
Kelly also said given the uncertainty in the Irish economy, and indeed internationally, the Continental scene in cycling was still fighting “hard times”.
“Even in Europe, not just in Ireland, it is definitely still quite difficult,” he said of the economic conditions.
“But I really feel we have a unique situation. We’re an Irish team; we’re competing abroad and looking after the younger guys coming up from junior and U23.
“From that point of view; with an Irish sponsor who is also trading in Europe, that’s the area we’ve been concentrating on. And there are some possible sponsors we’re still working on at the moment.”
An Post Chainreaction already has its other backers in place for next year; including bike suppliers and deals for other kit. The team is always turned out in pristine condition; it's riders, bikes and even the team vehicles are always immaculately prepared. And the team has represented its sponsors with great professionalism.
Asked if the big players in the Irish economy realised the exposure they could get from the team, Kelly said he felt that was an issue.
“I think that’s a problem, yes. Maybe they don’t realise how much you can get out of it.
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“There is obviously the exposure during the Rás, but also there’s a lot of social media activity around the team. And that's really important for businesses nowadays.
“So you have that exposure from backing an Irish team, you have the social media presence and we’re racing abroad as well; lots in Belgium and France.
“It means if you have a sponsor that is trading in Ireland and abroad, that wants brand awareness outside of Ireland; that’s where it becomes really interesting.
“We can definitely provide both; being the Irish team and having the Irish riders brings coverage in itself. And then on top of that; the international competition is extra.
“Even if you look at the Tour of Britain; that’s the big race to get into. And we’ve been getting into it every year, and doing very well. It’s a great opportunity, it’s live TV.
“And we’ve definitely gone there and been very active; been in the breakaways and gotten that TV exposure.”
Sean McKenna, top, is in his first year with the team. Yet he gained selection onto the Irish team for the elite men's road race at the World Championships last weekend. And he rode for over half the race in the breakaway; a race packed with the biggest names in the sport. Another man in that break was Conor Dunne, who did a couple of seasons with An Post-Chainreaction. Above, Matt Teggart takes stage 3 of the Rás this year. Consequently he'd seize the yellow jersey a little later in the race; achievements that generated significant RTE TV reports for the sponsors (Photo of Teggart by Ryan Byrne of Inpho. Photo of McKena by Sean Rowe)
Asked how he felt the final chapter of the search for a new backer would go; Kelly expressed a mixture of worry and optimism.
“We’re starting to run out of time. Back in June I had a number of people on my hit list. And then I started to really work on it, around July and August.
“And then when I started going through that list, people were saying they weren’t in a position to do it right at this moment, for one reason or another.
“When we worked down through the list, and we had a lot of contacts, a lot of potential sponsors; but as you started going down through them, people aren’t in a position (to back the team).
“At the moment we’re looking at the final (potential sponsors). But we have to get something soon; we have to get it in the next 10 days.
“By the end of October you have to submit (registration paperwork) to the UCI through Cycling Ireland.
“We’re really up against it. I’ve a small number I’m still negotiating with and really if it doesn’t happen in the next 10 days or two weeks...
“We could well have difficulty continuing on. And that really would be a shame. It is a concern; there is a real worry we might not be able to continue.
“But, as I say, we’ll work away on that small pool of sponsors. We’re keeping at it.”
Asked whether, in the worst case scenario, the team could revert to top amateur status for a year and then return to Continental level in 12 months, Sean Kelly was very lukewarm on that idea.
Furthermore, he said he had to think of the riders and what they needed from the project.
“It would be a disappointment not to be able to continue. But I’d want to continue at the level we’ve been at for the last number of years.
“I think that’s what we need to do. Anything less than that wouldn’t really be of interest to the riders. And it wouldn’t be fair to the riders.
“We need to do the type of programme we have been doing; and to be the type of team that we have been. You need that back-up on the road.
“And you need to do things like training camps; those December and January camps. You have to be able to do all of that.
“That would certainly be my way of doing it. So if you can’t keep it at the same level I’d prefer to take a year out and work on it. And then get back in there again at the Continental level (in 2019).
Sean Kelly on An Post Chainreaction riders' needs
"For the riders; they need the programme and we need to keep providing them with that back-up.
“If we can’t have that; I just don’t think we’d go ahead on anything lower; a smaller or weaker team.”
Kelly said if the team could land a title sponsor, or perhaps two; other deals for bikes and kit were already in place.
“They’re all ready to go, we are very lucky and have great relationships there.
"So now it’s about looking for one title sponsor, or two. And we need to get that finalised in the next 10 days or so.”
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