Cycling: New Zealand loses cup points in eligibility ruling

SYDNEY - Cycling New Zealand has been stripped of the World Cup points its men's sprint team secured in South Africa this month after the sport's governing body ruled adopted English rider Neil Campbell was ineligible.

CNZ was told by the UCI yesterday the four points gained by finishing seventh in Cape Town had been scrubbed after a complaint from the British Cycling Federation.

Campbell, who has lived in New Zealand for about two years, has also been forced to withdraw from the team to compete at this weekend's final World Cup round in Sydney because his citizenship application has not yet been processed and is unlikely to be before competition starts on Friday.

Jono Hamlin has arrived here as Campbell's replacement.

New Zealand head track coach Max Vertongen said losing the points was a bitter blow and made it difficult for the men to qualify for the world championships in Germany from July 30 to August 3.

"We now have no points so it's not great. You need every point you can get so it lessens our chances," Vertongen said.

Vertongen understood the BCF gave Campbell the go-ahead to ride for New Zealand but there was some "bad blood" in South Africa.

Meanwhile, Vertongen has culled endurance riders Richard Bowker and Jason Allen from an inexperienced teams' pursuit squad.

After a 10-day training camp in Adelaide, Vertongen could not decide between Tim Gudsell and Peter Latham so both will go to Sydney although one - and possibly both - will ultimately miss out.

The other pursuit riders are veteran Lee Vertongen, Hayden Godfrey, Marc Ryan and Heath Blackgrove.

The New Zealand quartet, once finalised, need to finish inside the top 10 to secure enough points for a berth at the world championships.

The Sydney meet features 42 countries and ends on Sunday.

- NZPA