The International Cycling Union (UCI) say they will make it easier for bicycle manufacturers to adhere to their technical regulations in future. These rules dictate what equipment can be ridden by professional cyclists, and as such strongly influence the marketing and sale of said products.
The world cycling governing body say they will keep an up-to-date list of approved products, starting with frames and forks, on their website, www.uci.ch. This should make it easier for commissaires to enforce the rules consistently across all UCI competitions. It should also stop riders (and manufacturers) being caught by "surprise" by equipment rules just before they're about to set off in the prologue of a grand tour.
In order to allow for developmental lead times, the UCI are asking manufacturers to submit their new designs for approval on 1 January 2011. Existing models are exempt from this, although they have to conform to current rules. All submissions will be made in confidence, the UCI say, as manufacturers rely on secrecy in order to stop their competitors borrowing their ideas.
Details of the approval protocol will be published on the UCI's website soon.