American cyclist with 'moko' upsets boss, Maori

An American cyclist has been told by his bosses to remove his full-face 'moko' or stop riding.

Professional world-class cyclist David Clinger has been given an ultimatum by officials of San Francisco-based Webcor cycling team: he cannot ride for the group unless he has laser surgery to remove a facial and scalp tattoo.

The 27-year-old, a former teammate of Lance Armstrong, paid $150 to get the tattoo while in Argentina.

He told the Sacramento Bee newspaper it was based on Maori warriors he had seen in a book.

Mr Clinger conceded in an interview that he had not read the book, or visited New Zealand, but was impressed by the culture. He had started having the tattoo removed.

News of the seemingly rash embrace of Maori designs has annoyed an East Coast ta moko expert.

Mark Kopua said it was offensive that a non-Maori with little appreciation for the art of moko would get his face tattooed.

He said traditional moko were unique to the wearer and could only be administered by trained experts.

"Moko on the face shows genealogy pertinent only to the wearer. If the tattoo artist has copied it from a book then they have stolen someone's identity."

He said there was a cultural attachment to moko not possible for non-Maori, such as Ben Harper and Robbie Williams.

Moko

* Singers Robbie Williams and Ben Harper have them, as does boxer Mike Tyson
* Maori designs came out tops among 15 to 24-year-old Italian tattoo enthusiasts surveyed by Italian magazine Panorama last year