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Michigan's Tour de Leelanau canceled, other Michigan races imperiled by sponsor pullout.
"Current economic realities" have caused Michigan-based health insurance company Priority Health to pull its sponsorship of three major midwestern races, and at least one of the events has canceled its 2009 edition.
Tour de Leelanau race director Steven Brown informed the Union Cyclist Internationale (UCI) on Friday that it was canceling the UCI category 1.2 event, which had been scheduled for May 24.
“This development certainly is disappointing but not completely unexpected," Brown said in a letter to the UCI. "All of our planning was on track until everything fell apart in October and the last quarter of the year. It is like losing a good friend,” he said.
Besides Leelanau, Priority Health sponsored September's Priority Health Grand Classic, in Grand Rapids, and Priority Health Ann Arbor Classic. The insurance company announced last fall that it was ending sponsorship of all three events, which were all on USA Cycling's National Racing Calendar.
"Unfortunately, current economic realities simply prohibit our continued investment in these races,” Priority Health’s Amy Miller said in a statement at the time.
Joe Lekovish, USA Cycling's local administrator for Michigan, said the Grand Rapids and Ann Arbor races are still on the calendar. "We're currently doing everything we can to save these two races," Lekovish said.
He added that Priority Health has been "an excellent supporter of Michigan cycling and despite withdrawing their sponsorship from these events, they continue to sponsor two amateur cycling teams in Michigan."
Lekovish also said that despite the uncertainty about the high profile events, Michigan's amateur cycling is strong. "On the amateur side the Michigan road racing calendar is shaping up to be the best in 20 years. Isn't that strange? It may be a sign that a recovery is just around the corner. The events that consume the largest amount of sponsor dollars are being canceled, while the
events that are attended by the average day-in-day-out racer are growing."
The news comes on the same week that the inaugural Oregon Pro Cycling Classic was postponed until 2010 because of financial concerns.
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