Special rules

The 81st Critérium International is organised by TDF Sport and Amaury Sport Organisation (A.S.O.), under the regulations of the International Cycling Federation (UCI) and the Fédération Française de Cyclisme (French Cycling Federation- FFC) and the Ligue Nationale du Cyclisme (French National Cycling League- LNC). It will take place on Saturday the 24^th and Sunday the 25^th of March in 3 stages.

The 81st Critérium International is open to teams of the UCI’s 1^st and 2^nd division and those from the organising country’s 3^rd division by invitation. The number of cyclists per team is restricted to a maximum of 8 and a minimum of 5 at the start of the race.

The mere fact of entering and/or participating in the event implies that each team fully accepts all the provisions laid out in these specific regulations and undertakes to respect them.

The event is ranked HC in the UCI Europe Tour calendar and awards the following points for the individual classification according to article 2.11.014 of the UCI regulations:

• the final classification: 100 - 70 - 40 - 30 - 25 - 20 - 15 - 10 - 9 - 8 - 7 - 6 - 5 - 4 - 3 points to the first 15 riders;
• stage winners: 20 - 14 - 8 - 7 - 6 - 5 - 4 - 2 points to the first 8 riders;
• winner's jersey at the end of each stage: 10 points per stage.

The race headquarters will be open on Friday 24 March from 2.30 pm to 6.00 pm at the Centre culturel et de congrès (Cultural and Congress Centre)
Espace Jean-Paul de Rocca Serra
Rue Fred Scamaroni
20 537 Porto-Vecchio

Licence-holding team managers will be able to collect race numbers from 2.30 pm to 4.45 pm.

The team managers’ meeting, in the presence of members of the Stewards’ Committee, will be held at 5.00 pm at the race headquarters.

Information on the race will be broadcast on Radio-Tour, using the frequency of 169.425 MHZ.

Neutral technical support is provided by Mavic, with 3 technical vehicles.

The leader of the general individual classification will wear the Yellow Jersey.

A points classification is established by adding together the points obtained in each of the 3 stages as well as the intermediate sprints.

Points for each of the intermediate sprints will be awarded as follows:

3 – 2 and 1 point (s) to the first 3 riders.

At the finish of the 1^st stage, 2^nd stage and 3^rd stage: 15 - 12 - 10 - 8 - 7 - 6 - 5 - 4 - 3 - 2 points to the first 10 riders.

The leader of the general points classification will wear the Green Jersey.

In accordance with article 2.6.017 of the UCI regulations, in the event of a tie the following criteria shall be applied in order until the riders are separated:

• the number of stage wins;
• the number of wins in intermediate sprints;
• the general individual time classification.

To be entitled to final general classification prize money, competitors have to complete the entire race within the official time limit.

The best climber classification concerns each of the 8 climbs selected for this classification.

The following points are awarded for each of the 8 climbs:

• to the 1^st rider: 6 pts
• to the 2^nd rider: 4 pts
• to the 3^rd rider: 2 pts

A general classification is established by adding together the points obtained at the summit of each of the climbs which count towards the best climber classification.

The leader of the classification will wear a white jersey with red and green polka dots.

In accordance with article 2.6.017 of the UCI regulations, in the event of a tie the following criteria shall be applied in order until the riders are separated:

• the number of 1^st places in the climbs;
• the final general individual time classification.

To be entitled to final general classification prize money, competitors have to complete the entire race within the official time limit.

Only riders born on or after 1^st January 1986 may take part in the young rider classification.
The leader of the best young rider classification will wear a white jersey.

In accordance with article 2.6.016 of the UCI regulations, the general team classification is established by adding together the three best individual times from each team.

In the event of a tie, the teams shall be separated by adding together the number of places obtained by their three best placed riders on the stage. If the teams are still tied, they shall be separated by the place obtained by their best rider in the stage classification.

The general team classification is established by adding together the three best individual times from each team in each stage ridden.

In the event of a tie, the following criteria shall be applied in order until the teams are separated:

• the number of first places in the daily team classification;
• the number of second places in the daily team classification etc.

If the teams are still tied, they shall be separated by the place obtained by their best rider in the general individual classification.

Any team reduced to fewer than three riders is eliminated from the general team classification.

The Green Bib prize is awarded to the most environmentally aware rider. At the end of each stage, this prize is awarded by a panel presided over by the event director. The designated rider will wear a green bib in the following stage.

Time bonuses, applied only in the general individual classification, are awarded on the 1^st stage Porto-Vecchio - Col de l'Ospedale and the 2^nd stage Porto-Vecchio - Porto-Vecchio according to article 2.6.0.19. of the UCI regulations.

They concern intermediate sprints and stage finishes, and are awarded as follows:

• at each intermediate sprint in two steps, 3'', 2'' and 1'' respectively are assigned to the first 3 riders.
• upon arrival at the 1st stage, 6'', 4'' and 2'' respectively are assigned to the first 3 riders. Upon arrival of the third stage, 10'', 6'' and 4'' respectively are assigned.

In accordance with article 2.6.029 of the UCI regulations, the finish of the 1^st stage at the Col de l'Ospedale is a summit finish.

The finishing deadlines are as follows:

• 1^st and 3^rd stages: 8 %
• 2^nd stage: 25 %

Any exceptional situations may be settled by the Stewards’ Committee and the race management.

For Stage 2 in Porto Vecchio, the time traial stages, the departures start every 30" or every 1 '1' in the reverse order of their general classification standings at the end of the 1st stage.

The order of departure for the time trial stages is the reverse order of their overall time trial classification. However the Commissaires may modify this order in order to prevent two riders from the same team following on from each other.

Supplementary breakdown cars are made available to competitors who do not have access to the technical assistance of their respective group.

The total amount of prize and special bonus money for the 81st Critérium International is as follows:

1) Prize money for the stages and the general classification

Stage prizes and overall classification: € 31, 838

2) Points classification:

1^st stage
For one sprint only:
to the 1^st rider: € 150
to the 2^nd rider: € 100
€ 250 x 1= € 250

3^nd stage:
For the sole sprint:
to the 1^st rider: € 150
to the 2^nd rider: € 100
250 x 3 = € 750

For final general classification:
to the 1^st rider: € 1,200
to the 2^nd rider: € 800
to the 3^rd rider: € 400
€ 2,400
TOTAL PRIZE PURSE FOR POINTS CLASSIFICATION: € 3, 400

3) Special bonuses for the best climber classification:

a) on each slop:
1^st: € 100
2^nd: € 60
3^rd: € 40
€ 200 x 6 = € 1,200
Total : € 1,200

b) for the overall standings:
to the 1^st: € 1,000
to the 2^nd: € 800
to the 3^rd: € 500
to the 4^th: € 300
to the 5^th: € 200
Total : € 2, 800
TOTAL PRIZE PURSE FOR BEST CLIMBER: € 4, 000

4) Best young rider classification

Prize money awarded for the best young rider classification is as follows:

For each stage:
1^st: € 50 x 3 = € 150

For the overallclassification:
1^st: € 300
TOTAL PRIZE PURSE FOR THE BEST YOUNG RIDER CLASSIFICATION: € 450

TOTAL PRIZE AND BONUS PURSE: € 39, 688

A.S.O. and each of the participating teams declare it an absolute obligation to scrupulously respect the regulations and procedures decreed by the relevant authorities governing the fight against doping, as well as the obligation to maintain a strictly irreproachable line of conduct in this domain. Participating teams hereby commit to applying the aforementioned regulations and procedures and shall be entirely responsible for the strict adherence to these regulations by their riders and more generally, their staff and service providers.

Anti-doping tests are carried out under the authority of the UCI and designated officials, at the finish line of each stage.

After each stage, the stage winner and the leaders of each classification must present themselves at the protocol ceremony.

Penalties are in accordance with the UCI regulations.

21.1 A.S.O. considers the preservation of its image, its reputation and that of its event of the utmost consequence.

A.S.O. expressly reserves the right to refuse participation in - or to exclude from - the event, any team or members of a team, whose presence shall seriously blemish the image and/or reputation of A.S.O. and/or the event.

21.2 Furthermore, A.S.O. may exclude from the event any team or any of its members in the following cases:

• a breach of the event's rules, including those concerning the event's internal rules (e.g. the rules concerning accommodation);
• a serious breach of French law;
• failure to use the collective means of transport laid on by the organisers during transfers;
• customs’ fraud.

21.3 The right of withdrawal or exclusion referred to in sections 21.1 and 21.2 above shall be exercised under the following conditions:

a) A.S.O. will advise the team of its decision in writing, which will be notified by registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt or by letter delivered personally with receipt, or by fax or email.

This letter must:

• specify whether the disqualification or exclusion is related to the presence of the entire team or the presence of some of its members;
• specify that, in the event that the disqualification or exclusion is linked to the presence of its members, the team, in its capacity as an employer, will withdraw the member (s) concerned and the associated personnel from the event or, alternatively, waive any right to participation of the entire team to the event;
• state the grounds on which it is based;
• mention that to challenge this decision, the team will have a period of 24 (twenty four) hours from receipt of the letter of disqualification or exclusion to refer the matter to the Court of Arbitration for Sport ("CAS" ) in Lausanne. Failing that, the team will be deemed to have accepted the disqualification or exclusion.

b) If the team refers the matter to the CAS, the latter will immediately appoint a single arbitrator under the expedited procedure under the Rules of Procedure of the CAS. After calling each party to evaluate its case, the arbitrator will decide within the time limits imposed, whether to reject or exclude the entire team or one or some of its members.

The language of arbitration shall be French.

The arbitrator shall resolve the dispute in accordance with French law.

The arbitral decision shall be final and binding.

In order to enable the promotion of the Critérium International, each team, and therefore each rider within the teams, acknowledges that participation in the competition grants the organiser and its beneficiaries or legal representatives to reproduce and display, without any compensation whatsoever, his name, voice, picture, biography and more generally his sports performance within the framework of the Critérium International as well as the brand (s) of his equipment manufacturers and sponsors, in any form and on any material existing or in future, in any format, for any communication in the public domain throughout the world, for any purpose including promotional and / or commercial use without any limitations, and for the duration of the protection currently given to any territory by the laws or regulations, judicial decisions and / or arbitration of any country, and international conventions either existing or in the future, including any extensions that may be made to this duration.

However, when the organiser authorizes third parties to use pictures of the event for advertising or promotional purposes, it will not allow the latter to use the name, voice, image, biography or performance sports of a rider or team nor the brand of their sponsors or equipment with a view to a direct or an indirect association between the rider, the brand of his sponsors or equipment manufacturer and the product, the service, the brand or trade name of the said third party, without the express permission of the rider, sponsor or supplier concerned.

Similarly, with the exception of books, photo books, comics, any form of publishing, video cassettes, CD-ROMs, DVDs or more generally any video recordings or video on any medium and format whatsoever, that may become the subject, in whole or part of the Critérium International, posters, bills, log books, autograph books, maps and official programmes for the Critérium International, the organiser will not use and will not allow the utilization of the individual image of a rider within the framework of the marketing of tie-in merchandising.

The present regulations are written in French and shall prevail in the event of difficulty in interpreting its terms in another language.