Marc Madiot is known to be franc and the FDJ manager has criticized the governance of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) about especially the Astana case. According to an interview with L’Equipe, Madiot declined to criticize the UCI Licence Commission’s decision not to revoke Astana’s World Tour status. He prefers to told about UCI President Brian Cookson.

“It wasn’t Cookson who decided [on Astana] but up to now I still haven’t seen any concrete action on his part,” Madiot told L’Équipe. “The ‘Truth and Reconciliation’ commission cost hundreds of thousands of euro to learn things we already knew. With three and sixpence, they could have concentrated on corticoids and banned them. That’s something concrete but they haven’t done it. We’re waiting for him to be consistent with what he said when he was elected. But above all, it’s a problem of governance of this sport.”

“The level crossing at Paris-Roubaix, where’s the UCI? The Tour of the Basque Country with that dangerous finish, where’s the UCI? When Cavendish brought four or five guys down at the finish of the first stage of the Tour last year, where was the UCI?” Madiot added. “In football, you mightn’t agree with the referee’s decision but at least there is a decision. In the end, you realise that we don’t decide anything in cycling.”