Doping: What it means in Women’s Cycling

Before anyone says I don’t mention it – yes, there are drug infringements in women’s cycling.  I know that, of course I do. Some high profile; from crooked coaches and their evil regimes, to repeat offenders that make me feel angry every time my team lines up against them.  Even World Champions have fallen foul of the clear rules and regulations.  These cases are no better than those in men’s cycling or any other sport.  Happily these cases seem to be few and far between.

There’s no high ground to claim, I want that to be clear.  In women’s cycling, however, there doesn’t seem to be a culture of reduced sentences as a thank you for accepting ownership of cheating.  It’s also far less often that riders get a true second chance; riders often get no route back or are forced to race individually away from the professional scene.  You also certainly can’t claim it’s being done for financial gain, so why do it? Why risk your health, both physical and mental, for so little?  For those not familiar with the rewards available to female cyclists, I’ll show you a few random prizes:

3^rd Place in Tour of Flanders – 564 Euros

Winner – UCI 1.1 one day race – 379 Euros

5^th place in stage of UCI 2.1 stage race – 99 Euros

Tour Series final podium for the Matrix Prendas team

Now I have no idea what it costs to enter into a doping regime, but I’d suggest these prizes don’t justify it, and I’d hazard a guess that it would take one hell of a season to even cover the costs of basic and unsophisticated doping.  So in women’s cycling I can only assume it’s done either out of stupidity, selfishness, or in some cases, without the riders’ knowledge (Of course I’m sure these are all factors with men also).

With the UCI very much under the microscope, including its leaders, I have real worries for women’s cycling on two fronts. Firstly, who is actually in charge of women’s cycling at the moment?  Who is focused on it on a day-to day-basis, and can we expect a full and independent investigation into their conduct over a number of years to ensure our sport is in good hands?  Secondly, with all of this focus currently on defending alleged past and current actions, how much time is going to be devoted to taking our sport forward?

It’s a commonly-used phase by people at the moment that women’s cycling is at a pivotal time.  That’s actually only true if we are given the scope to develop, if we are given the ability to move forward with adjustments to how the sport is set up. Minimum salaries, minimum standards, event and team stability – all leading to increased media opportunities and return.  If these areas aren’t addressed, we could better describe our current situation as women’s cycling is sitting on a knife edge.  I personally believe that if we slip off that edge, the fall is long. The climb back up will be even longer.

The Olympics are always a major time of change for women’s cycling with team sponsorship very often being linked to the Olympic cycle.  Riders retire, teams fold, and the face of women’s cycling changes in the short winter following the Games.  For 2013 there are some legends of the sport who are bowing out, and they’ll be truly missed, make no mistake about it.  But we have some great new riders entering the elite level of the sport, like Lucy Garner, to add to the likes of Prevot, Armitstead, and Vos as young superstars who potentially hold the future of the sport in their own hands.

One thing that I have been thinking about recently is the lack of top women road riders who actually recommend getting into the sport.  How often do we hear the stars of here and now saying how wonderful the sport is and providing constructive ideas on how to make it even better?  We often hear disgruntled riders saying it’s hard (true), saying the pay is a scandal (true), saying the uncertainty wears you down year on year (true), and questioning what the future holds for the sport (again, true).  But there are some riders in women’s cycling making good money. Some of these riders have great lives, travelling the world, being paid well to do something I assume they love.  I really hope we can start to hear more of these stories.  Junior riders are ‘living the dream’ when they go away to Europe – unpaid, scared and wide-eyed for their first major racing experiences.  What happens in the intervening years; let’s hear it.  Vos leads the way on this.  She’s in love with the sport, a self-proclaimed Fulltime-hobby-cyclist, positive about change and the advancement of women’s cycling, but happy to compete and try to get on in the current environment.

My only influence is at the grassroots level of the sport.  I really feel that if we can raise the standards at this level, it’s the best way we can actually impact the top of the sport.  By raising standards within teams and at events, I hope we can, in turn, raise rider aspirations and create a ladder of opportunity that gives riders of all abilities a place to thrive within the sport.

#FanBackedWomensCycling has grown from my last article.  It could be a big boost to women’s cycling in the UK, we’ll see what 2013 brings as the conversation is still very much going on.  There have been some fantastic team announcements for 2013 (Hitec, Sengers, Argos, TIBCO, Lotto, Dolmans) that really make me feel we are in for an amazing season of professional racing.  The fact that women’s cycling news, transfers, and views are being published is already a great step.  The powerhouses are still there like Rabo and Orica, but the gap is closing with strength in depth I haven’t seen for a long time; it’s genuinely exciting to me.  For this to have occurred shows investment and sponsor stability is happening, so let’s be confident.  If we can also continue to close the gap from the ground up, the sport will be at a level that it can no longer be overlooked.  Let’s unite behind the sport and continue to give it the investment, respect and future it deserves.

But let’s remain ever vigilant. If rewards go up, let’s never allow our sport to be taken over by scandal. Let’s keep women’s cycling at the clean heart of New Cycling, where it belongs.