UAE Team Emirates could face sanctions as UAE under radar for supporting Russian invasion

There has already been some impact on cycling from the Russia-Ukraine conflict, but it seems it will now have a negative impact on Tadej Pogacar's UAE Team Emirates.

UAE has remained neutral in the conflict, allowing sanctions-hit Russian citizens to travel and helping them transfer money out. As a result, this act does not sit well with Western nations that have considered sanctions against the country.

It could mean that the UAE Tour will no longer take place, and Tadej Pogacar's team will no longer be involved with UCI's races. “I think there would be a debate, a discussion, possibly meetings with organisations such as the IOC to try and get some feeling for what would be the most appropriate response for all of the sports, rather than just making an individual case. That’s what Lappartient will be looking at doing,” informed a former UCI official to CyclingWeekly.

It will, however, be the Olympic Committee that will heavily influence the decision, and the rest will be determined by their orders. “It’s better to ask the question to Olympic Committee everybody knows the international federations follow the decisions of Thomas Bach. The mission of the IOC and the Olympic Games is to unite the entire world in peaceful competition," concluded the former UCI official.