Normally you’d think of Switzerland as one of Europe’s wealthiest countries, a land of mountains, lakes and hard currency. But this might not be so.
Mo’ points, mo’ problems
Fabian Cancellara’s stormed the season. As yesterday’s UCI rankings show, he’s in seventh place with 200 points. In the same rankings you can see the national rankings and Switzerland is on 214 points, meaning all the other Swiss riders put together have a mere 14 points.
Cancellara’s haul means Switzerland can send nine riders to the world championships in Melbourne. You’d think this would be a source of Swiss pride. But no, given the costs of going around the world the national cycling federation is complaining. Speaking to lematin.ch, the cost is estimated at 60,000 francs, or €37,500.
The lucky Australians are in third place and will be able to field a large squad at lower cost. But Fabian Cancellara alone is all the Swiss need to send.