Wearing matching kits is a non-negotiable in a world championship event, as Eritrean riders found out after receiving large fines post race.
BROSSARD, QUEBEC – SEPTEMBER 27: Amanuel Ghebreigzabhier, Biniam Girmay, Merhawi Kudus, Henok Mulueberhan and Team Eritrea prior to the 99th UCI Road World Championships Montreal 2026 – Men Elite Road Race a 273.4km one day race from Brossard to Montreal on September 27, 2026 in Brossard, Quebec. (Photo by Tim de Waele/Getty Images) (Photo: Tim de Waele/Getty Images)
Updated September 27, 2026 10:03PM
The UCI hit two Eritrean riders and the team’s director with hefty fines on Sunday after the elite men’s world championship road race.
Their transgression? Not littering, riding in a dangerous manner, or resting their arms on their handlebars in an illegal position as Demi Vollering was fined for the day before. No, they wore the wrong clothes.
Biniam Girmay and Henok Mulueberhan were both fined 500 CHF (~$600 USD) for violating UCI Article 2.12.007.3.9: having “different clothing for the different riders of a team.”
The team’s director Samsom Ghebreyesus was fined 1,000 CHF (~$1,200 USD) for the same offense. It’s unclear why he received a larger fine and if he was being fined for allowing riders to take the start line in different kit or for also wearing incorrect national team clothing.
The third Eritrea national team member to take the start line, Merhawi Kudus, was not fined for his team kit.
In total that’s $2,400 in fines across the squad for wearing incorrect team kit, likely more than the cost of buying three new matching custom kits for the whole team.
All three members of the team took to the start line in slightly different looking team kits, with Kudus and Mulueberhan wearing what appears to be the same jersey but different bib shorts, and Girmay wearing a different jersey and different bibs altogether from his two teammates.
Although Kudus was not fined, he did not appear to be wearing national team bib shorts, instead wearing the black ones supplied by his trade team.
None of the three riders finished the race, a particularly difficult, attritional worlds course that saw Brandon McNulty become the first American elite winner in 33 years.
They weren’t the only riders fined in the men’s elite race, however. Remco Evenepoel was also assessed a 500 CHF fine and 25 UCI points for disposing of waste or other objects outside of the litter zones. Guatemala’s Manuel Rodas was fined 1,000 CHF, 25 UCI points, and assessed a yellow card for using a non-compliant position or point of support on the bicycle—the same violation committed by Demi Vollering in her win Saturday.