LIVAROT, France — The man who founded the first African team to race in the Tour de France said on Friday that racist abuse suffered by one of his riders in Austria this week could not deflect from its success in establishing Africa’s place in world cycling.
MTN-Qhubeka team founder Douglas Ryder said Eritrean Natnael Berhane was upset at being called the N-word by Belarussian Branislau Samoilau as they raced alongside each other in the Tour of Austria on Wednesday, but had rejected suggestions he be disqualified.
“The Commissaires’ Jury spoke to both riders and their teams,” a spokesman for UCI, the international cycling body, said. “Everyone agreed that it was unacceptable, and the rider apologized and offered to donate one month’s salary to team MTN-Qhubeka’s foundation.”
MTN-Qhubeka’s Eritrean rider Daniel Teklehaimanot became the first black African to wear a leader’s jersey at a grand tour when he claimed the polka dot jersey for best climber on Thursday’s sixth stage of the Tour de France from Abbeville to Le Havre.
But celebrations were soured when news came through of Samoilau’s comments to Berhane.
The incident was the talk of the peloton at the start of the Tour de France’s seventh stage on Friday.
“Hopefully it was an isolated incident and although Natnael was pretty upset about it at the time, he is fine now,” Ryder told Reuters. “It’s sad that every conversation I have today is around racism and around being bullied in the peloton.
Teklehaimanot retained the polka dot jersey for another day after being part of the breakaway of the day on Friday.
Meanwhile, Mark Cavendish of Great Britain edged Andre Greipel of Germany in a rare sprint stage.
Cavendish finished the 118-mile seventh stage in four hours, 27 minutes and 25 seconds, beating his fellow sprint specialist for his 26th Tour stage win.
Fellow Brit Chris Froome retained the overall lead, 11 seconds ahead of Peter Sagan of Slovakia and 13 seconds up on Tejay Van Garderen of the United States.
Froome inherited the race leader’s yellow jersey on Thursday after Cavendish’s teammate, Tony Martin, suffered a broken collarbone and was forced to withdraw.