UCI threatens to take action against Johan Bruyneel if he continues “to have any role or capacity” in Tour

Lifetime ban is a lifetime ban. Not many people were handed one in the history of cycling, but one of those who did – Johan Bruyneel – has slowly regained his prominence in the sport through related activities such as co-work on Lance Armstrong’s The Move podcast.Thanks to the newly-build connections, Bruyneel made it onto the 2025 Tour de France – something he’s not prohibited from doing – in cooperation with Belgian TV. However when UCI spotted Bruyneel in sections with limited access, their patience run out.

The UCI issued a following statement, expressing disconcern with Bruyneel’s presence and threatening further action were he to continue to act beyond his level of clearance:

“The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) noted the presence of Mr Johan Bruyneel in the Tour de France start village on 17 July 2025 in connection with his participation in Vive le vélo, a programme broadcast by the Flemish-language Belgian public television channel VRT1.

“On 25 October 2018, Mr Bruyneel was sanctioned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) with a life ban for anti-doping rules violations when he worked with the US Postal Service Pro Cycling Team and the Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team.

“In accordance with Article 10.14 of the World Anti-Doping Code and the UCI Anti-Doping Rules, Mr Bruyneel is banned for life from taking part in any activity related to cycling. While he is free to attend a cycling event registered on the UCI International Calendar – such as the Tour de France – as a regular spectator, he is strictly prohibited from participating in the event in any role or capacity, or from accessing areas that are closed to the public. This includes, in particular, areas of the Tour de France that require accreditation.

“As a person serving a lifetime ban, Mr Bruyneel was therefore not authorised to be present in the Tour de France start village or team area.

“The UCI would like to add that the accreditation process for the Tour de France is not its responsibility, but rather is that of Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO), the race organiser. The UCI confirms that it has contacted ASO to clarify whether Mr Bruyneel was granted an official accreditation, to understand how this could have happened, and to ensure that no further accreditation will be issued to him.

“The UCI stresses that it is closely following this matter and will take all appropriate measures.”