Pro Team Structure – What About the Women?

February 5, 2009

No…I didn’t forget about the women.  I wanted to post this one separately so you could get some discussion of your own since I know how passionately you feel about the UCI’s pathetic position towards Pro Women’s cycling.

Pro Woman

(Only One Category)

Roster Size: 8 rider minimum, 16 rider maximum.

Minimum Salary: None

Bank Guarantee: Minimum $5,500, or 10% of the team’s rider contracts.

UCI Registration Fee: $3,000

Contribution to Biological Passport Program: None

Example: Columbia Women’s Team, Vision 1 Racing.  Almost all are registered in Europe.

You can see why most professional women cyclists also have extremely accomplished careers and education backing them up. They know that they’re not doing this for the money and there’s not much room to move up in the ranks and  the payscale.

But woman’s cycling isn’t really a sport, is it?   Being a Podium Girl is where it’s at.

Tagged as: pro, team, women

  • Tommy P
    I think the problem is more systemic. You simply can't give women more prize money or better time slots and expect that to fix everything. From my observations there is just not that many women, compared to men, racing at the grass roots and club level. I think that clubs like SKCC are doing a great job at supporting women racing, organising training and group rides and making the whole experience less intimidating. Approaches like this should make cycling a more viable pastime for women, it should increase numbers and competition and therefore public interest and prize money etc over time. Nothing, however, is likely to be as effective as a few gold medals at the next olympics. Go Anna Meares and co!
  • cyclingtips
    I'm not sure that most men have an appreciation for how fit and fast most of these pro women cyclists are. I'm fortunate enough to be good friends and ride with Sharon Laws from time to time. Sharon is a pro cyclist in Europe and went to the Beijing Olympics and the Worlds to help Nicole Cooke win here titles. I'm certainly no PRO, but when the road starts to go upwards, Sharon drops me like a bag of bricks. Unbelievable how fast she is on the hills.

    I also know for a fact that I cannot keep up with the fast finishin women like Belinda Goss or Jenny MacPherson in a sprint either.

    Like I said, I'm no PRO, but I'm no slouch either. I've ridden with many pro tour men. They are certainly stronger than the women which is to be expected, but the level of these women is extraordinary as well.
  • Mo
    @Ross:
    I think what you mean is that you like to look at athletic women. And that's fine if you're giving women a chance but as it was pointed out for us, there isn't much of an opportunity for women. I feel like women's cycling is like powder puff football, it doesn't count for much except for team spirit... Lame sauce!
    You cannot label women's racing uninteresting or lesser if they're not given a chance or any real incentive to show what they are there for. Women can race just as well as men do. They can also race roughly and just as dirty. I should know.
    And sex appeal?! Are you kidding?! You must be insane, do you want them to wear bikinis? I think there's already enough sex appeal in a sweaty lady in racing gear.
    Given the right environment and opportunity, women will prove men very wrong in this sport just like every other.
  • Ross
    Sorry to infuriate so many feminists. I love athletic women. Ones that can ride are even better. But womens racing just isnt as interesting as mens racing. Maybe the levels of prize money lead to mens sport being more elite? Maybe its just the physical differences. For this reason, I think womens racing is always going to be the poorer cousin unless sex appeal can be bought into bike racing somehow......
  • sandy
    not to mention that organisers marginalize the women's events by pushing them out to poor timeslots that aren't good for advertisers and tv coverage. The UCI does nothing to influence these decisions by the race organisers.

    Solving this problem may be the first step towards women being paid some respectable money for doing this sport.
  • Marion
    Woman's cycling is just an afterthought to the UCI and race organisers. Prize money is so disproportional it's not even funny. Something has to be done about it if it's going to develop as a "real sport"
  • Hugh
    Like it or not, podium girls are part of bike racing. Oh yeah... guys like looking at pictures of girls, second to pictures of bikes I should add.
  • tom
    hook, line and sinker.
  • pip read
    Maybe pictures like this are not helping? why do we need to have pictures of this standard??? just to create media attention.....almost as bad as motor racing.
    pip
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