Equipe Paule Ka folds after French fashion house fails to pay the team for three months

Équipe Paule Ka, one of the biggest women’s cycling teams in the world, has been forced to fold with immediate effect after the French fashion house failed to pay the team for three months. The announcement leaves numerous riders, including Britain’s Lizzy Banks, without a team heading into 2021.

The Swiss-registered UCI women’s squad, formerly Bigla-Katusha, were one of the big success stories of the summer, defying the coronavirus doom and gloom to land what appeared to be a brilliant sponsor on a four-year contract just weeks after it looked as if they might have to fold.

Paule Ka were happy to talk up the deal, saying how they saw the cycling team as a possibility to reach their target demographic, and the move was hailed as an encouraging one for women’s cycling as a whole. But problems with the new sponsor started almost immediately, when Paule Ka was late to make its first payment in July, then failing to pay the team in August, September and October, despite multiple assurances the money was on its way, the team said.

A statement from team management said: “This is an extremely sad moment in the 15-year history of this squad, which prides itself on the development of exciting young talent within the peloton. The team’s riders and staff were looking forward to spending several more years together in the pursuit of sportive success.”

Banks, who won a stage of the recent Giro d’Italia, had been preparing to ride in the final two races of this season, the women’s Tour of Flanders and De Panne. She said the team’s closure “hurt a lot” but vowed she would be back.

“Walking away from my team-mates and writing this post hurts a lot but I want to explain to you all what is going on,” wrote the 29 year-old on her Instagram.

“The truth is that this has been an incredibly difficult two weeks. We learned at the beginning of last week that @paulekaofficiel, who committed to three and a half years of sponsorship, only paid one instalment in July and as of this moment, the team is waiting for the rest, and because of this the team was simply unable to manage any further financial commitments of racing.

“That's pretty much the whole story that there is to tell. I really hope everyone from this talented group finds a new job and a new team that believes in them the same way that this project believed in all of us.”

Banks added: “I started my European career in January last year as a total nobody. I was so green, my knowledge of race craft was very limited. I can't believe how much I've progressed over the past two seasons, my highlights of course being two stage wins of the Giro Rosa, taking second in Plouay WWT and another 24 top 10s.

“Results aside, my personal development in to the team captain and road captain is one of the things I'm most proud of and having played a role in the development of all the athletes on this team and played a part in creating a culture of successful teamwork which has taken us to the forth best team in the world. Another sad day but I am a fighter and I will fight again.”