Anti-abortion fast food lovers join USA Cycling
Posted on 08. Dec, 2008 in Bike Racing, Sponsors
The Amore e Vita/McDonald’s cycling team, based in Lucca, Italy and registered in Poland in 2008, has found a home with USA Cycling for 2009. First question: what is “Amore e Vita”? Literally translated as “love and life,” the team describes it as a “Christian and humanitarian message of undoubtable beauty.” The team’s website features a long and detailed history (English translation here), including an account of team owner Ivano Fanini’s moment of inspiration:
In 1989 at a presentation in the Vatican square by Pope John Paul II, Fanini decided to make known to all his thoughts on one of the most dramatic, burning themes to all Christians: abortion.
After “feminist” protests against their not-so-subtle “NO TO ABORTION” jerseys, Fanini rebranded in 1990 to “Amore e Vita” to avoid further controversy. It has worked; no one seems to care about their religious mission or anti-abortion origins. The team is supported by a base of individual donors and maintains strong ties to the Vatican. McDonald’s Italia arrived in 2006 as co-sponsor for reasons unknown.
Second question: how can they register with USA Cycling? Apparently they’re going to race more frequently in the US, although that technically has no bearing on where they register. UCI rules (pdf) allow teams to register in any country that will have them, and each national federation sets its own eligibility criteria and registration fee. USA Cycling charges $4,000 for Continental teams, plus the UCI fee of 6,750 CHF (currently $5,600 USD). Professional Continental and ProTour teams are pricier. Case in point: Kazakh-sponsored, Belgium-based Astana fulfilled the Luxembourg federation’s requirements in 2008 by virtue of a local address and Benoit Joachim.
USA Cycling’s rule is that any Continental team from any country can register in the US as long as there’s a plurality of Americans on the roster. For Amore e Vita/McDonald’s, that means 4 riders out of 17. Welcome to America! Somehow, I have a feeling that the Big Mac-eating pro-lifers will feel right at home. No word on whether they’ll use the Popemobile for the team car.
