In a full statement, Sean Kelly and Kurt Bogaerts have set out the situation around the An Post-Chainreaction team. It has sadly lost its sponsors and has run out of time to find new ones.
Statement by Sean Kelly and Kurt Bogaerts on An Post-Chainreaction
Sean Kelly and Kurt Bogaerts have sadly been unable to find a major sponsor to replace An Post for next year.
It means their An Post-Chainreaction team will not be in the pro peloton next year. The Continental-level outfit counted a number of Irish riders in its ranks.
They included Matt Teggart, Conor Hennebry, Sean McKenna and Damien Shaw.
However, while the effect hibernation of the project for a year is a blow, Kelly and Bogaerts insist the team will be back.
And they even say their plan to progress to ProContinental level in time remains intact.
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Both men released a joint statement this morning, which you can read in full below.
“Unfortunately, time has worked against us to secure a sponsorship agreement before the October 31st deadline to compete in 2018,” they said.
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“However, we continue to look towards 2019 and the goal of advancing to the Pro Continental level with enthusiasm.
“Despite this disappointment, the decade long relationship the team shared with An Post not only contributed to the team's success but also to the development of the sport within Ireland, for which we are most grateful.
“The An Post Rás provided an annual platform to showcase the team and our riders to the people of Ireland and further afield.
“This in turn encouraged more people to follow our great sport. More recently we had the addition of Chain Reaction Cycles as co- sponsor.
“We would like to extend our sincere gratitude to our title sponsors, our secondary sponsors, Cycling Ireland and Centre CENIT who provided our riders with the hands-on care and knowledge to get the very most from their natural ability.
“It has been our pleasure to work with talented riders and to see them succeed and develop.
“We created an environment which nurtured honest hard work combined with determination.
“This facilitated the progression of Irish riders like Sam Bennett, Ryan Mullen, Conor Dunne and Matt Brammeier, each of whom made the transition to the top levels of our sport, along with riders from other nations such as Gediminas Bagdonas, Aaron Gate, Shane Archbold and our most recent success story Przemek Kasperkiewicz.
“We are resigned to not making the start line for the 2018 season, but our goals remain the same: to advance to the highest ranks of professional road cycling.
“Considering the team's strong links to Spain and the United Kingdom, the implications of Brexit and the political scenario in Catalunya impacted the decisions of interested parties but we remain undeterred.
“Our next objective is to secure a collaboration with a suitable sponsor by July of next year with the hope of returning to the international peloton with a strong and dedicated roster of talented riders.
“We would like to thank our fans and supporters for their unrelenting encouragement and good will towards the team and look forward to giving you something to cheer for again in the not too distant future.”
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