Astana revealed that it has cut the salaries of its riders and staff by 30%, citing the financial impact of the coronavirus outbreak on the team and its patrons.

The pay cuts will take effect this month and will last until the cycling season resumes. Astana's team leaders include Jacob Fuglsang, Alexey Lutsenko, and Miguel Angel Lopez.

All races are currently suspended, with the spring classics and the Giro d'Italia among the postponed events; the UCI will meet with officials on Wednesday to discuss possible dates for the resumption of the season, but it is still unclear when competition will resume and what the new calendar It is not yet clear when competitions will resume or what the new calendar will look like.

"Starting in April 2020, the Astana Pro Team will cut the salaries of its riders and staff by 30% until the team starts racing again," managing director Jana Schiele said in a statement.

"This was decided due to the economic crisis of the organization and its sponsors caused by the Covid 19 virus."

In March, the Spanish newspaper AS reported that Astana's players and staff had not yet been paid their salaries for the opening months of the year. The team cited paperwork delays, but claimed that the 2020 budget had been approved in full by Kazakhstan's sovereign wealth fund, Samruk Kazyna.

"I want to make it clear that all salaries to date have been paid 100% and will be paid in full again as soon as the crisis is over and the team can resume racing," Seal said. All athletes and staff respect this decision and recognize that this is an exceptional decision at an exceptional time."

Astana is the second WorldTour team to confirm management and player pay cuts during the cycling hiatus caused by the coronavirus outbreak. Other teams have used state unemployment benefits to pay staff salaries.

"It's a difficult time for the cycling world and for our team. We have to cope until the crisis is over, but it is certainly not an ideal situation," said Astana coach Aleksandr Vinokurov.

"We can only hope that it ends soon so that we can focus again on winning races. We have to overcome this situation together and everyone is more important to the team than anyone else."