As you may be well aware the hugely anticipated Tour de France began on Saturday in spectacular fashion. Marred by crashes at the finish line and GC contender Alberto Contador from Tinkoff having a spill halfway into the first stage you also may have noted some changes to the Cannondale Pro Cycling Team.
Founded in Boulder, Colarado the Cannondale Pro Cycling Team entered the UCI WorldTour peloton in 2009. But news broke on June 30 that Drapac Capital Partners had become title sponsors of the Cannondale Pro Cycling Team, as well as becoming substantial shareholders in Slipstream Sports.
Team founder Michael Drapac notes the huge toll professional sport can have on human life and is enthused about the pathway that his development squad can set out for athletes transitioning to the next stage of their lives after competition. The Drapac-Pat’s Veg UCI Continental registered development squad will be linked to the WorldTour team, giving riders the direct opportunity to move through the ranks and race in the WorldTour.
However, the development squad requires it’s riders to attend a university course or pursue professional-level certifications or apprenticeships.
What This Means
Not much will change for the remainder of the year between the pro-continental Drapac team and the WorldTour Cannondale-Drapac team as they continue to finish the 2016 season intact.
From January 1, 2017 the resources from the Drapac Pro Cycling team will be spread across the Cannondale-Drapac WorldTour team and the Drapac-Pat’s Veg development squad.
Partnering with Slipstream Sports gives both Drapac and Slipstream some financial stability for the season ahead.
The Cannondale-Drapac team is currently placed sixth overall on the teams classification list at the Tour de France with their best placed rider, Frenchman Pierre Rolland, 12th on the overall classification after Stage 2.
Also over the weekend at the Tour of Austria, Drapac Pro Cycling rider William Clarke currently sits third overall on Stage 1 after taking the prologue win on Saturday.