What sanctions and fines can be imposed on cyclists during a race?

As in all sports, cycling is governed by a set of rules that all participants must follow. The race commissioners and, at a higher level, the Disciplinary Commission are responsible for ensuring compliance with these rules and, if necessary, applying the sanctions and fines outlined in the disciplinary regulations.

This is how the UCI enforces the Cycling Sports Regulations

The Cycling Sports Regulations are a set of documents that the UCI keeps published and regularly updated on its website. These documents cover all aspects related to this sport and the rules that must be followed, from how races are organized to the technical aspects that equipment must comply with, and more.

To ensure compliance with all these rules, the commissioners, also traditionally known as judges-referees, are on the ground verifying the development of the various competitions. If a violation is detected, it is time to refer to Title XII. Discipline and Procedures, of the Cycling Sports Regulations. A document often quite unknown even to those who compete, which outlines how violations of the rules are sanctioned.

There are different types of infractions, which can be race-related offenses, listed in tables in the regulations of each discipline, specific offenses, specific to each discipline, specific offenses established by each organizer, and a final section that includes violations that do not fall into any of the previous categories.

Depending on the severity of the offense committed, the UCI establishes different types of sanctions, which, in the case of national events, are applied and managed by the federation of each country.

At the first level are Warnings. These are applied in cases of minor violations and are simply a reminder of the content of the violated rule, which can be issued by the commissioners or by the Disciplinary Commission itself.

Similar to warnings are Reprimands, which essentially have the same philosophy as warnings but are formulated in writing and in a more formal and solemn manner when expressing disapproval of the offender's behavior.

From here, we move on to the actual sanctions, starting with Disqualification, a measure that can be taken before the race, meaning that the sanctioned rider or team cannot start the competition; or they can occur afterwards, resulting in the invalidation of all results and rankings obtained in the race, as well as the loss of prizes and points.

Next, we find one of the most common sanctions during races, which are Fines, which, as a curious fact, are still set in Swiss Francs as the UCI has its headquarters in Switzerland. Fines are usually listed in tables that list race offenses or, in specific cases, the Commissioners or the Disciplinary Commission establish the specific amount. In any case, the sanctioned cyclist or team has one month to pay the fine, or they risk a Suspension.

A variant of Fines as an economic sanction would be Prize Return, which consists precisely of that, having, like in the case of Fines, a one-month deadline to carry it out.

In more serious cases of infractions, the UCI resorts to Suspension, the consequence of which is the prohibition of participating in any way in any race or activity under the UCI umbrella. In addition to participation, Suspension also entails not being able to receive any financial assistance related to sports activities during the duration of the suspension. The most common case in which Suspension is applied is violations of anti-doping rules.

Other less common measures, but also included in Title XII of the Cycling Sports Regulations, are Prohibition of Engaging in any cycling-related activity, Educational Measures, or any other disciplinary measure that the Commission may establish specifically.

A set of sanctions that, like all regulations, seek to ensure equality in competition and that all participants play by the same rules without anyone gaining an unfair advantage that could alter the final result.