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Unibet.com wins again as Cooke storms stage at Etoile

By VeloNews.com
Published: Feb. 8, 2007
Do you think Unibet.com is still getting publicity from all of this?
Do you think Unibet.com is still getting publicity from all of this?
Photo: Agence France Presse

After a spending a day in their normal team kits, riders from the Belgian-Swedish Unibet.com team were forced back into their distinctive question-marked jerseys Thursday at the Etoile de Bessèges.

Oddly enough, the team resumed its winning ways with the switch, as Unibet’s Baden Cooke easily won the sprint at the end of the 155km second stage from Nîmes to Saint-Ambroix.

The team was once again required to wear jerseys sans the name of its title sponsor because French authorities said the team – sponsored by an online betting site - was promoting gambling and “lotteries,” which are banned under an 1836 law and modern ministerial directives.

Etoile de Besseges race organizers had allowed riders to race in their normal team kits on Wednesday, pointing to the lack of clarity in a directive that bans Unibet from advertising, but allows riders sponsored by the Belgian and French national lotteries to ride in their Lotto and Française des Jeux jerseys.

"The French authorities want us to take on job of enforcing rules which are not ours," complained race organizer Roland Fangille.

Frustrated, Fangille nonetheless ordered the team to make the change and asked journalists at the race to refer to the team as Unibet, not Unibet.com, an apparent reference to the fact that the site is illegal in France.

The dispute prompted the team to ride Tuesday’s GP d'Ouverture La Marseillaise in distinctive jerseys adorned only with a large black question mark. The move probably generated more attention for the team – and its sponsor’s website – than would have allowing riders to compete in the relative anonymity of of the peloton. Remarkably, Unibet’s Jeremy Hunt brought even more attention to the dispute by winning on Tuesday.

With the Unibets back in their normal kits on Wednesday, the day was won by Crédit Agricole’s Angelo Furlan. Now that the dispute has reared its ugly head, Cooke scored a win on Wednesday. It’s enough to make one willing to bet on the team when French officials fully exercise their authority.

“We will finish Etoile de Bessèges with the alternate jersey,” Unibet manager Jacques Hanegraaf told AFP. “It is a pity for the team, because we need our title sponsor and we do have a right to expose that sponsor’s name. Like many other things in cycling these days, we will have to discuss the matter with our attorneys.”

The Unibet.com team is also at the center of a dispute between the UCI and ASO, the owners of the Tour de France and the upcoming Paris-Nice stage race (March 11 to 18). ASO has refused to invite Unibet to the race, despite the fact that the squad earned a ProTour license for the 2007 season.