Special News Feature
Fraser frozen out of USPRO
 |
The legal actions by leading Canadian cyclist Gord Fraser against race organiser Threshold Sports reveal the implications for a rider who feels the need to resolve the matter in the courts. Kristy Scrymgeour and Gerard Knapp report on the exclusion of Fraser from this year's USPRO championships in Philadelphia, an issue that has divided the US cycling community.
Next Tuesday, June 10, is the date for the preliminary hearing in the legal actions initiated by Fraser against Threshold Sports and one of its key race sponsors, BMC Software, as well as USA Cycling. Fraser, now a member of the emerging Health Net team, is suing over two matters: one dates back to September 2000 while the other is due to the rider not being invited to compete in the 2003 Wachovia USPRO Championships, the country's most significant week of racing.
The actions stem from a US cycling tragedy that profoundly affected racers and fans alike, while at stake was significant prize money. On September 17, 2000, both Fraser and Saturn rider Nicole Reinhart were poised to win a bonus prize of US$250,000. Both had won the three previous events of the four-race BMC Software Grand Prix Series and they needed to be victorious in the fourth and final round, the BMC Tour of Boston.
But at 1:27pm EST, Reinhart was pronounced dead at an area hospital as a result of multiple head trauma suffered in a crash near the finish of the women's race. The men's event was immediately cancelled and it was announced that BMC Software would donate the $250,000 bonus money to help establish the Nicole Reinhart Foundation.
Along with the cancellation of the men's race went Fraser's opportunity that day to win the big prize bonus. "On the day of the last BMC race in 2000, I don't think anyone was in the frame of mind to be racing, but I feel we should have at least had the chance to go for the bonus some time at a later date," Fraser told Cyclingnews. "There was still a lot of racing left for the year. There was a crit in Miami that could have been used as the last race of the series."
Fraser and John Wordin, the then director of his Mercury team, requested that a final race be held later in the year to give the team the opportunity to race for the bonus. That opportunity did not arise. Subsequent attempts by Wordin and Fraser were also rejected.
Threshold Sports CEO Dave Chauner told Cyclingnews, "There were suggestions (for another race), but in reality it was not possible. It was the end of the season and there were no funds to hold another event. We actually split the regular prize money for that day between all the teams and gave it to them for expenses. There is a lot of talk from people who don't know the facts that we just kept the money. But that is not true, the teams got the prize money."
Fraser's suit, which was only filed in April last year, alleges breach of contract. The rider believes he was prevented from competing in an event where he had the opportunity to secure the major prize bonus of $250,000. Not that the rider believes he is immediately entitled to the money. Rather, "we want the chance to earn it," he said.
Threshold Sports reacted strongly to this suit, describing it as "frivolous" and claiming there was no prize money left, as it was all donated by the sponsor to help set up the foundation in memory of the widely admired and talented female rider.
Consequently, on April 29 this year, the CEO of Momentum Sports Group and owner of the Health Net team, Greg Raifman, was informed via email by Threshold that an earlier invitation for his promising new team to compete in the USPRO races did not extend to his star sprinter, Fraser.
 |
When Raifman replied that team selections were his responsibility, Threshold subsequently withdrew the invitation to the entire team. Raifman was advised by Threshold to contact its lawyer, James Binns, to discuss the matter further. Raifman said he made several attempts to contact both Threshold and Binns, but neither responded.
Chauner said "we are not prepared to invite a guy who is suing us to our race. But Gord has to do what he has to do and all three of us will defend him vigorously."
Subsequently, Fraser has launched a second suit, claiming restraint of trade and loss of income as he alleges he is being restrained from working in his profession as a professional cyclist. Fraser told Cyclingnews the legal action "could have been avoided. I was prepared to drop the case completely as long as they allowed me to race, but I needed a written commitment from them for three years. Health Net was prepared to renew the contract for the team for three years and I didn't want to have to go through all this each year. But Threshold refused to do that," Fraser said.
However, all is not lost for the new team Health Net. Raifman and Threshold did come to an agreement on June 5, with Raifman relenting and accepting the earlier offer from Threshold. Health Net will be sending a team to Philadelphia for the USPRO Championship event, but without Fraser and other team members who are not US citizens.
Bonus was to be split
Central to Fraser's suit is the prize bonus on offer in the 2000 BMC Grand Prix Series. He contends, "They are claiming that there was $250,000 split between men and women, but all along it was clear that it was $250,000 bonus each".
Indeed, there is considerable confusion in the US as to how much money was actually on offer: Was it a $250,000 bonus to be split among the male and female riders, or a quarter of a million dollars for each rider?
Threshold Sports CEO Dave Chauner said, "The original deal that was advertised in all the brochures was $250,000 for the male or the female rider who could win all four. This was interpreted at $250,000 each by the media, but the concept was a total of $250,000. We admit that there was a lack of clarity, but not from our standpoint. Only in the way it was interpreted by the press," he said.
A somewhat ambiguous press release issued by Threshold Sports on September 4, 2000, states: "At stake in the BMC Software Cycling Grand Prix, is a bonus of $250,000 to any cyclist, male or female, who wins all four BMC Software Cycling Grand Prix events. Gord Fraser (Team Mercury) and Nicole Reinhart (Team Saturn), by virtue of winning the three previous BMC Software Grand Prix races, will be riding for this bonus September 17 in Arlington, MA."
The assumption that BMC was also offering $250,000 to the female winner was the understanding of the Reinhart family. Writing to Cyclingnews in March, 2001, on the subject of prize money for female riders, Pam Reinhart, mother of Nicole said: "Nicole was also very excited about the fact that BMC was offering women the same opportunity as the men to win the $250,000 bonus. All things being equal women face the same risks and are equally competitive and work just as hard as most men."
The reality is that the bonus prize money was not actually available in cash, but guaranteed under what's called prize risk insurance. In this case, the organiser insured itself against the likelihood of either or both male and female riders winning all four races. If they won, as was looking very likely, then Threshold would make a claim, the insurance company would pay out the bonus, and then the organiser and its sponsor would pay off the claim in instalments.
Threshold's Chauner told Cyclingnews, "When the tragedy happened, they (BMC Software) immediately donated the money to the Reinhart family. We did not expect them to do that, it was a terrible situation. BMC had a few of their executives there and I don't know who it was exactly, but they made the decision on their own volition do donate the money.
"What it comes down to is that the race was not won and therefore the bonus was not won. When all the teams heard about BMC donating the money they all thought it was great. All the team directors, including (Mercury DS) Wordin agreed in not holding the event," Chauner said.
Too shocked to race
On September 17, the women's event was eventually won by Tina Mayolo-Pic - who, like the remainder of the field - was unaware of the tragedy about to unfold behind her. Afterwards, the men were too shocked to race. Cyclingnews diarist John Lieswyn, a member of the then Team Shaklee, wrote: "Mercury director, John Wordin talked to some of the teams about doing a ‘ride' instead of a race, allowing Fraser to win and donating the $250,000 bonus and all prize money towards Nicole's hospital bills. None of us could conceive that it could be worse than just injuries and an expensive hospital bill.
"When the announcement came that she had died and the race was cancelled, everyone started packing up in dumbfounded silence. About 30 minutes later about 50 riders from the men's field and several cycling fans boarded their bikes, and we all followed the Saturn team car around in a lap of mourning. Uninformed groups of cheering residents lined the course. It was jarring to hear them whistle and clap."
[Lieswyn's comments and many more can be found in the Nicole Reinhart tribute page].
It could be argued that technically, Threshold did not have to pay the prize bonus for the women's event because Reinhart did not win the final event. Therefore, Fraser believes he has a right to race for the widely advertised bonus.
"Don't get me wrong, what they did for the Nicole Reinhart Foundation was right on, I totally agree that that was the right thing to do and it was great for the sport too, but they claim they gave all the money to them and that all along it was $250,000 for both men and the women."
Where to for Gord?
One of North America's most successful sprinters over the past decade and a previous winner of events during the USPRO week, Fraser would have been considered one of the favourites had he been allowed to compete in the USPRO races. He had been in good form this year with his new team, who had won 30 percent of the races they'd entered and ended up with a podium spot in 70 percent of their races.
The action by Threshold has stunned the rider, who believed that his legal action should remain separate from his new team. "If I had have known the repercussions of this I wouldn't have gone through with it, but now I am forced to, because Threshold wouldn't accept my offer to drop the case. If they are going to ban every team I ride for from Threshold events then my future in cycling is very limited. No team will want to hire me if they cannot be a part of the big races," he said.
 |
Momentum Sports' Raifman was unaware of Fraser's legal action against Threshold when he signed the rider earlier this year. "He had been racing in (other) Threshold events and it had not been an issue," he said of Fraser's performances with the Mercury team in 2002, particularly where he ended up on the podium at the Threshold-run inaugural New York City Cycling Championships in August last year.
"They had to pay him on the podium at New York, so maybe they did not want to take that chance again," he said. However, Fraser did then compete again and finished 21st in the Threshold-run San Francisco Grand Prix in September.
"They're retaliating against Gord by pressuring the Health Net team to make him drop the action," Raifman said. "It's hard to speculate, but if I had known beforehand (about Fraser's law suit) I certainly would have enquired and maybe contacted some of the defendants, or potentially structured our contracts differently", he said of his agreement to sign Fraser earlier this year.
The actions have not just affected Fraser, but also his teammate Mike Sayers. "This year it is bad for Mike Sayers. He has great form and he could have possibly won Lancaster and even the US PRO champs. For so many years he has been a domestique working for other people. This year he finally had the chance to win some big events for himself and it has been taken away from him."
With Raifman relenting, Sayers will now get his chance at the main event on Sunday, but without his Canadian team-mate who would undoubtedly lead him out for the final sprint. Until now, it had been a good start for the new team. Raifman said, "Health Net are very supportive of the team and the organization. They couldn't be more pleased, but they are very disappointed (with the rejection from Threshold) and they've questioned the validity of professional cycling in North America when one of the top teams can't compete at the highest level."
In fact, Raifman was in the final stages of securing a multi-year sponsorship deal from Health Net but those discussions are now on hold as this matter is settled. "Prior to this I was finalising a multi-year deal with Health Net, but all that has been put on hold."
Also see:
Cyclingnews interview with Gord Fraser
