British cycling president Brian Cookson has decided to run against Pat McQuaid in the election for UCI presidency later this year. The Briton cites the lack of transparency as the main reason behind his decision and promises to step up the anti-doping fight and carry on an investigation into the UCI's role in the Lance Armstrong affair if he is elected.

Pat McQuaid may finally have solved his problems of finding a natural federation to nominate him for a third term as UCI president, with the Swiss federation now backing his candidacy, but he could now face much bigger threat to his ambitions of taking up a third term at the head of the global cycling federation. British Cycling president Brian Cookson who has been a member of the UCI Management Committee since 2009 and president of the UCI Road Commission since 2011, has decided to run for presidency of the UCI.

“I am today announcing that I am standing as a candidate for the Presidency of the UCI. I have the full support and nomination of my home federation, British Cycling, and I respectfully ask for the support of the national cycling federations of the world and the whole international cycling family,” HE said. “I am not doing this lightly as I know how much needs to be done.”

The UCI has been in the spotlight during recent years due to its possible role in covering up Lance Armstrong's doping. The USADA report into the past of the embattled seven-time Tour winner contained allegations of a cover-up of a positive test for EPO taken at the 2001 Tour de Suisse, and while UCI has firmly denied it, the federation dissolved its internal commission which was to investigate the UCI's anti-doping policy in the past.

Since then there has been many public calls for McQuaid to step down as UCI president but the Irishman has repeatedly claimed that his work has put cycling at the forefront of the anti-doping fight. However, the main reason behind Cookson's decision to run for president, is the lack of transparency that has seen the UCI draw a lot of negative attention in recent years.

“The passion I and many others have for cycling cannot hide the fact that our international body, the UCI, remains hugely distracted, continuing to flounder in waves of damaging historical controversies,” he said. “For far too many people our sport is associated with doping, with decisions that are made behind closed doors and with ceaseless conflicts with important members of the cycling family and other key stakeholders."

“The stakeholder consultation exercise held this year by the UCI has clearly demonstrated that there are many excellent aspects to the UCI, with much good work underway, but all of this has been severely compromised by the widespread absence of confidence in the integrity of the organisation.”

His main priorities will be to step up the anti-doping fight and carry out an internal investigation into the allegations made in the USADA report.

“We must restore cycling’s credibility,” he said. “The first priority for the new UCI president must be to change the way that anti doping is managed so that people can have confidence in the sport. We must also urgently carry out a fully independent investigation into the allegations of corruption in this area which have so damaged the UCI’s reputation."

“I want to see a UCI whose culture and way of doing things is defined by openness, transparency, and a commitment to more collegiate decision making. We need to work for the good of cycling globally, and not protect vested interests, wherever they may lie. The best way we can achieve this is to be much more open on how we operate and make decisions.”

Cookson points to his transformation of British Cycling to make clear that he has what it takes to lead an international federation.

“This transformation has been achieved, above all, by creating a well run, stable federation governed on the principles of honesty, transparency and clear divisions of responsibility,” he said. “These principles are even more important for an international federation.”

The election will take place at the UCI annual congress at the world championships in Florence in September.