Alameda Runners – Get After It!

Bye-bye, Euskatel-Euskadi.

The Basque cycling squad, with its bright orange jerseys and largely Spanish roster over the years, is pulling the plug on a successful 20-year run.

Team Euskatel-Euskadi rider getting after it.

I grew up watching pro cycling and seeing the Spaniards in their orange jerseys light up mountain stages was inspirational.

It’s a shame to see Euskatel shutter after 20 years – the poor economy in Spain caused a long-time sponsor to consolidate spending.  There was last-minute hope that F1 driving superstar Fernando Alonso, a longtime cycling supporter, would invest millions to save Euskatel. Expect to see an Alonso-backed team sometime in mid-2014, if all goes according to plan.

The team closing unfortunately means a full squad of riders, team mechanics, and other employees are largely going to be out of a job. Team Sky picked up Spanish climber Mikel Nieve and will be an important part of Chris Froome’s 2014 Tour de France squad. Expect other riders to join a ProTour team, retire, ride neo-pro, or not have a team for next season.

Read more:

VeloNews – Cycling loses something special with demise of Euskatel
Cyclingnews – Euskatel-Euskadi: an idea as much as a team