She writes "Watt a mess. And how ironic. While Australian engineers are at the forefront of cycling technology with their new 'superbike', the Olympic 3000m pursuit selection has made Australian cycling itself look like a dog's breakfast. The scuffle between Kathy Watt and Charlie Walsh flags a couple of sore spots for the Australian Cycling Federation. One is team selection; the other is the role of women in the sport."
"Cycling endures a relatively low profile in Australia because our riders spend most of their time overseas. The Commonwealth and Olympic Games can provide a much needed publicity boost. The problem is that there is usually publicity, but this isn't the first time it has focused on selection foul-ups. Many in the cycling world are shaking their heads that it happens so often, that so many riders are hurt as a result, and that the biggest loser inevitably, is cycling."
"Watt's situation may have little to do with her being a woman - like Walsh, she's known as a prickly customer - but it's a reminder that the story of women's involvement in the ACF has often been difficult. It's not a long story. Australia sent its first women's team overseas in 1985. But old habits die hard and some of the cycling stalwarts seem to be still adjusting to the idea that the women might be there for more than a bit of a giggle. Under the circumstances it's impressive that athletes of the calibre of Watt, Tracey Watson and Anna Wilson have emerged."
"Getting women into the sport in the first place isn't easy. The old feminist quip says that a woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle. While men and women have had their differences, men seem to have always been keen on fish. Most women haven't had the same passion for bikes, at least not in the context of the rough and tumble of competitive cycling. Most girls still grow up being more exposed to Barbie wardrobes than the idea of getting filthy replacing a bike chain. This is also a sport which wreaks havoc with one's physical self. Sooner or later, exponents develop hunched shoulders and curious looking thighs. Each outing carries the chance of a spill which can result in the rider wearing plastic skin while their own lies out on the bitumen somewhere."
"Wilson is back on a bike after a fall which broke her pelvis in four places. Let's face it, much as a lot of girls who have overdosed on fashion magazines grow up thinking ill of their hips, they are also not inclined to want to go and smash them. Most girls who join cycling clubs do so through a family member or after acquiring a liking for it in triathlons. A lot don't last. They need support if they are to stick to something like this, and they may not get it."
"If they have to ride with the boys and get dropped on the first hill, humiliation and demorilisation soon kick in. And a lot of girls who are inclined toward bike riding take up triathlons instead. Why? Its packaged better, its promoted better, and it offers equal prizemoney. As one cyclist said 'You go to a cycling event and it's out in the middle of Whoop-Whoop, no-one knows what is going on, and the first woman finisher gets $20 while the first man gets $200.'"
"There are also few high profile women in the sport. Watt is the best known of any of the Australian riders but she's hardly effusive. Some observers hope that if Wilson finishes well in Atlanta she might begin to develop a profile. She's gutzy, but she's bright and personable too."
"The dearth of women is particularly acute in the decision-making ranks. Is it any wonder the women riders feel like proverbial shags on the rock when the president and the five vice-presidents, the CEO, the high performance manager, the coaching co-ordinator, all senior coaches, and the media director are all men. The Australian Sports Commission provided a one-off grant to establish a Women's Commission which seems to have brought about some improvements, but the ACF has not kept up the funding for it."
"And Walsh, never known for his wild enthusiasm over the women riders, is soon to become responsible for overseeing all ACF coaching programs. Walsh has apparently said that it's his job to get results, not to be human. A lot of corporations used to think the same way, but those who wanted a future discovered that they needed to learn to do both. Cycling needs to decide on the type of future it wants. If the ACF intends women to be more than fringe dwellers in the sport, a few basic steps need to be adopted. Appropriately skilled women need to be recruited in the executive and senior levels (and systems need to be developed to groom women for future positions). More attention needs to be paid to the image of the sport, and more effort needs to go into attracting girls to it and giving them adequate support."
"Cycling has some talented and dedicated women, but there are too few of them. To develop the Super Bike the engineers defied convention by replacing the standard tubular frame with a hollow one-piece shell. Defying convention is also what the ACF needs to do."
Bill notes: Couldn't agree more. Even men's racing which I have been involved with for many years now would improve with less of the old-fashioned army like behaviour of some of the officials. One cold day, a few years ago I was lining up in the bunch facing 164kms and this stupid bloody ex-general type started screaming at us to move in off the road and get closer together. I asked him how much we had to move in by (anticipating a truck had to get by or something sensible). He screamed back in the hailer "one inch"! Blind authority. Even young boys get turned off by this.