Yesterday it was announced that Bradley Wiggins is part of a star-studded line-up for the Abu Dhabi Tour. Now his participation has come into question.

Both CyclingWeekly and Cyclingnews have reported that Bradley Wiggins will skip the Abu Dhabi Tour which was set to be the final road race of his career, to focus on his final two track appointments at the Six-Days of London and Ghent. He had already claimed that the Tour of Britain was his final event on the road and so many were surprised that the Brit was listed as a starter in Abu Dhabi.

However, the organizers have reacted harshly to the news by issuing the following statement:

"The Abu Dhabi Tour, organised by the Abu Dhabi Sports Council with the collaboration of RCS Sport, wish to share this clarification of the issues surrounding Sir Bradley Wiggins’ contracted appearance at the 2nd edition of the four-stage road race, 20-23 October. 

"Before the first announcement (20 September) we received the approval from Team Wiggins to communicate the presence of Bradley Wiggins at the upcoming Abu Dhabi Tour. 

"Last week the Official Enrolment Form was submitted by a Team Wiggins official to RCS Sport with the name of the rider Bradley Wiggins included in the provisional entry list. 

"In addition, as is usual practise for a major race, flights and accommodation have been booked in the name of Bradley Wiggins and those accompanying him.

"The race organisers are surprised and disappointed to see different stories in the media regarding Bradley Wiggins and the Abu Dhabi Tour.

"It is important to clarify that the long-standing expectation has been that Sir Bradley will be riding the 2016 Abu Dhabi Tour, and that all operations by the race owner, race organiser and its representatives and agents have been based on that expectation in good faith."

The four-day Abu Dhabi Tour starts next Thursday.