ADISPRO International

On the initiative of the Italian ADISPRO, the International Association of Directeur Sportifs has been officially set up.

The project aimed at setting up the International Association of Directeur Sportifs took one step further to realisation when the association’s newly-elected President Serge Parsani asked Alain Rumpf, manager of Pro Tour council of the International Cycling Union to officially recognise the new association.

This is ADISPRO International’s first official act following the election of the executive committee, which took place during the association’s meeting in March. Mr Parsani was voted in as president, Neel Stephens as vice-president and seven executives were also chosen.

"We asked the UCI to assign ADISPRO International with the institutional role that we believe it rightly deserves in light of our presence on technical committees," said Mr Parsani. "We believe that restoring the role of directeur sportif is very important, and this should begin with institutional recognition. We are now waiting for an official reply to our request from UCI President Pat McQuaid, but we have already received our first positive reply from the UCI, which came in the form of an invitation to take part in the commissions scheduled for 16th May."

Luca Guercilena, the association’s secretary said that "the fundamental aim of ADISPRO International will be to work towards restoring full dignity to the role of DS by making a clear distinction between this role and that of team manager."
President of the Italian ADISPRO, Alberto Volpi, is one of the association’s executives and has also been one of the main advocates of the international project: "We have worked so very hard to reach this goal, so I can hardly conceal my delight that it is finally happening. I firmly believe that ADISPRO International will be perfectly capable of acting as a vital interlocutor during this delicate period in which our sport finds itself"