José Luis de Santos has been a professional rider, manager, national coach and is now the President of the Association of Professional Cyclists in Spain ACP. From his current position, he confirms that he shares views with Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO), organizer of the Tour de Franc,e in their decision to leave in 2017 WorldTour that will undergo a reform by the International Cycling Union (UCI).

BiciCiclismo has contacted De Santos (1968) to know more about his views on the battle between ASO and the UCI. Santos remains "optimistic" and believes that together the parties can reach "a deal in one way or another." He also defends the autonomy of his association and makes it clear that the international riders union CPA represents itself.

CPA president Gianni Bugno has criticized the UCI for failing to reach an agreement that included all the key stakeholders.

”In addition to the lack of consensus among all the stakeholder in the process, we also think that any process about cycling reforms should maintain a lot of the values ​​that have made ​​this sport important,” he says. “That was one of the points where ASO did not agree and we share that view. The news is certainly not good; it is best to work together for a good reform that is good for all parties, riders, teams and organizers. We should all go forward hand in hand. But right now you can see that it's complicated.”

Santos does not believe that it will be possible to have a WorldTour without the Tour de France.

“It is not a question about whether it is possible or not. Another thing is that the interest is quickly called into question,” he says. “The Tour is the beacon of professional cycling and the highlight of the media interest. It will be difficult to explain this to the public.

We must be optimistic that a deal will be reached in one way or another. The reality is that cycling cannot have two parallel leagues. There is a lot of competition for media interest with other sports and this will only confuse the fans. Ideally, there will be consensus and a good solution. However, in reality there was no debate at the UCI seminar in Barcelona reality. No one said anything, it was decided quickly and then the Tour decided to leave the WorldTour.”

As always, the riders are caught in the middle of a war between the teams that support the reform, and the organizers.

“Riders have contracts with teams and it looks like they are support the UCI, claiming that "we must adapt to the times." To get access to the decision makes is becoming more difficult due to many factors and the position of the riders is not comfortable.

“The CPA represents itself, and works with the UCI, organizers and teams for the progress of the sport. Obviously you always want more and more focus on the riders. But it is useless to complain. There are numerous developments and achievements in recent years that indicate that we are getting noticed.”