An unprecedented ruling by an arbitrator has led to Dylan Bibic being added to Canada’s team for the upcoming UCI Track Cycling World Championships, overturning a decision made by a national sports organization. Bibic, hailing from Mississauga, Ont., holds the seventh spot globally in men’s track endurance cycling and secured Canada’s place at the world championships in the omnium event. Despite this, he was initially excluded from the team for the championships in Santiago, Chile due to Cycling Canada modifying the selection criteria for the omnium by disregarding 2024 track results.
The omnium, known for being a comprehensive endurance event in track cycling, saw Bibic disputing his exclusion, claiming that a cyclist ranked 135th was chosen over him following a safe-sport complaint he filed against a member involved in the selection process. Bibic’s legal team, Dr. Emir Crowne and Amanda Fowler, expressed their satisfaction with the arbitrator’s decision, highlighting the puzzling choice of selecting a lower-ranked athlete over Bibic, emphasizing the importance of sending the best athletes to represent Canada.
The arbitrator acknowledged Bibic’s exceptional performance in 2024, which included securing Canada’s omnium spot through his outstanding achievements such as winning the UCI Champions League, clinching a bronze medal at the world championships, and earning three Nations Cup gold medals. Notably, the arbitrator, Praveen Sandhu, ordered Cycling Canada to include Bibic on the team for the world championships rather than initiating a new selection process, citing the lack of a clear rationale in Cycling Canada’s decision-making process.
Sandhu also highlighted the absence of documented reasoning behind Cycling Canada’s alteration of the omnium selection process, underscoring the importance of transparency in such matters. The arbitrator pointed out the accumulation of circumstantial evidence suggesting bias in the selection process, ultimately concluding that the perception of bias was valid in this case. Sandhu’s ruling emphasized the need for organizations like Cycling Canada to provide clear explanations for their decisions, especially when significant discrepancies in athlete selection arise.
