Cycling-Ciccone wants clarity over photo-finish verdict at Euro championships

Italian cyclist Giulio Ciccone has ​challenged the photo-finish verdict in which ​he lost the European Championships ‌road ​race to Remco Evenepoel in Slovenia on Sunday.

Ciccone overtook Evenepoel with a few hundred metres remaining and looked set ‌for victory before he was reeled in by the Belgian, with the pair wheel-to-wheel as they crossed the finish line. "The title was decided by a margin of 0.0028 seconds, ‌which is 2.8 thousandths of a second," Ciccone wrote on social media.

"I've watched ‌the available footage hundreds of times and, in the shots where the finish line is visible, I keep seeing something I can't square with that verdict." Ciccone, 31, said the criteria used to interpret ⁠photo finishes ​had been explained ⁠to him by officials and his federation's technical staff.

"I'm not asking for another explanation," he added. "I'm asking ⁠to see the photo finish that matches the actual finish line exactly. I'd like to ​see, clearly and beyond doubt, our two wheels crossing at the exact point ⁠where the regulations say the finish is determined."

Lidl-Trek rider Ciccone also said Evenepoel had raced "like a champion". "My ⁠respect ​for him is enormous and has never been in question."

In response, the European Cycling Union (UEC), which organises the European Road Cycling Championships, said the photo-finish was ⁠not a traditional photograph. "The final image is composed of the chronological sequence of recordings taken ⁠at the finish ⁠line," it added.

"This can create apparent distortions of wheels, bicycles and riders, without affecting the accuracy of the result in any ‌way."