This morning, Italian newspaper La Gazzeta dello Sport came with the news of the day for the world of cycling: Danilo Di Luca is set to join Katusha Team for the upcoming 2011 season. The only condition imposed by Andrei Tchmil, manager of the Russian squad, was that the cyclist from Spoltore had to ride at zero cost, receiving only bonuses for the accomplishment of certain objectives…

The background of this movement is, at least, doubtful. Leaving off sportive considerations such as what can Di Luca offer to Katusha given the facts that he is 34 years old and hasn’t took part in any competition for two years; leaving off ethical issues of signing a rider who has had several links with doping… The truth is that the movement is almost completely wrong legally. Although Di Luca has already finished his two-years ban and is free to sign with any team (in fact Astaná has been tempting him for months), he can’t go to Katusha and, in theory, he can’t ride without perceiving a minimum salary…

Provision number 10 on the Joint Agreements agreed by International Association of Professional Cycling Group (AIGCP) and Associated Professional Riders (CPA), in force to rule the contracts between riders and squads, establish a minimum wage of 33.000 € per year (increased to 50.000 € por ProTeam riders according to UCI regulations) for any profesional cyclist not ‘new profesional’. It can be added to this amount certains bonuses agreed by rider and team. This provision makes illegal Di Luca’s signing “at zero cost”…

But there is a clause in the Joint Agreements which makes posible to avoid this obstacle. In case of agreement between cyclist and squad to “break” the rule, the UCI ProTour Council can establish exemptions “in interest of sport”. In fact, Danilo Di Luca’s is not the first time in professional cycling when a rider doesn’t perceive any salary: oficially, neither did Jorg Jacksche nor Lance Armstrong in Cinelli and Astaná in 2008 and 2009, respectively. And no word about the cyclist who doesn’t receive any euro of those they had signed…

The true problem for Di Luca’s signing with Katusha comes because, if the Italian joins, the composition of Russian team’s roster would be illegal as It was according to its movements in the cycling market. Successive news this winter said that the squad had in its rangs 30 cyclist and only one new professional (Egor Silin), when UCI establishes on its 2.15.110 regulation a minimum of two and a maximum of five for those teams who reach the 30 signed riders. For the UCI, a new professional is a cyclist who joins a UCI ProTeam or Professional Continental Team for the first time no later than during his twenty-second year; the status of ‘neo’ lasts till the end of the second year as pro of the rider.

The effective of Katusha lowed to 29 cyclist when Artem Ovechkin was “cutted” before first training camp of the team in Calpe (Spain). Taken in account the movement, roster became legal again, and only able to be extended with a rider of 22 years or less and no professional expirience. The signing of Di Luca is illegal from that sight. But Tchmil hasn’t said the last word about this issue. Nowadays there are only 26 riders registrated on the UCI by Katusha, remaining to be registered amongst those with a reported contract Arkimedes Arguelyes, Joaquín Rodríguez and the ‘neo’ Egor Silin. The Russian squad can add Silin officially to its rangs, even another new professional; but only two riders of the shortlist of Arguelyes, Rodríguez and Di Luca…

If he avoids this legal problems, Danilo Di Luca would be able to return to first level of cycling in Katusha Team. His calendar would be composed by, amongst others races, Tirreno-Adriático, Milano-San Remo, the Ardennes classics, Giro d’Italia (where he would be a domestique of Joaquín Rodríguez) and Vuelta a España (where he would be leader). It would be a great ocassion to clean his name and his conscience, as advices him the priest Marco Pozza, who told him to confess his doping in front of five hundred pupils and to sign his contract with Katusha before the same children. Everything, that said, if legal considerations doesn’t brake his incorporation… At this moment, everything is a ‘would’…