Vuelta's Javier Guillen succeeds Prudhomme as president of race organizers' association
Vuelta a España general director Javier Guillen was named the incoming president of the Association Internationale des Organisateurs de Courses Cyclistes (AIOCC) this week, succeeding Tour de France head Christian Prudhomme of the Amaury Sports Organization.
Prudhomme had served as AIOCC president for 18 years but did not stand for re-election. Guillen will serve an initial four-year term, but as the ASO owns a majority stake in Vuelta promoter Unipublic, the company will keep a firm role at the head of the race organizers' association. The new steering committee is also heavily represented by ASO-affiliated promoters, as four of the seven administrative roles are held by ASO-owned event companies.
Guillen also made comments on two reform ideas currently debated within the sport. In a conversation with Wielerflits, Guillen said he's against charging fans for access to the race route (outside of existing VIP zones), saying "we are and remain a free sport," while pledging to look for new income streams. Guillen also voiced support for continuing to explore a salary cap for teams. "Maybe we can't figure out a way, but we have to keep talking about it," he said.
