Dear friends,
The July 23rd 2022 in Olbronn - Durnn, Germany was held the European BikeTrial Championship, a really successful and well organized event.
Unfortunately the event was characterized for an external disturbing factor, law enforcement activity to our race put in place by UCI.
Although participants in our races are required to have a BIU card and, therefore the UCI cards are excluded from our races, UCI has warned its members from attending our event, defining the event as a “forbidden race”.
This fact has discredited our activities damaging our image and spreading great fear and uncertainty among the riders attending our competitions.
I would like to clarify some points:
The problem is inside UCI only. UCI threaten with sanctions to their affiliated riders and clubs to prevent them to participate in BIU BikeTrial international competitions.
UCI threats to riders has been happening since BIU’s beginnings and they’ll keep delivering this threats, for sure.
BikeTrial International Union is the only Sport Organization deputed to manage BikeTrial or Bike Trial sport in the world and countries where BIU is represented. BIU and UCI are not related at all, and UCI do not have any right on BikeTrial sport so, UCI can not forbid any BikeTrial race, ny any means.
BikeTrial races are held in full legality and we have been managing World BikeTrial Championship and Continental BikeTrial Championship for the last 30 years. Our competitions are official and internationally recognised. We are as official, legal and recognised as any of the UCI races.
BikeTrial sport, rules and name is under BIU’s copyright and no one except BIU and its affiliates can use. Despite of that, our name has been used to define UCI races too many times. We never use Trials or any of the UCI terms they use to describe UCI Trials competitions. We come from the motorcycle trial, we are different since our beginnings and our distance increasing through the years.
We are not at war with UCI. We are volunteers, we defend the rights of our organisations and, above everything, the rights of the riders to compete and enjoy of the sport we love. We never threaten our pilots to avoid them to attend to UCI events or competitions. We believe in riders’ free will and with whoever and whenever they want to compete. Know that the organizers or BIU events have worked for you, not for BIU organisation members’ personal interests and that no one from BIU have perceived any economical reward or payment for the EBC 2022 race.
There’s the goodwill way and there’s the legal way to solve this deadlock. But we think we could give UCI the chance to meet us and find a compromise to avoid more of this painful episodes. We insist: we are not competing against UCI, our only commitment is with the riders and BikeTrial.
Nevertheless, the BikeTrial World Championship will continue to be celebrated; UCI threats cannot and will not change that fact. Actually, they have become an extra motivations we never looked for, asked or needed. All the contrary.
We give to all European Citizens the chance to enjoy themselves with a few days of sport. We believe in people’s choice right, something humanity have fought for during centuries. Nothing more.
Best regards,
Giuliano Gualeni
BikeTrial Vice President
