Peter Kennaugh apologises for wording of Emma Pooley ‘get over it’ tweet

To follow on from Nniff the Olympic women's race was a better race - especially on TV. Unfortunately for the 4 years in between each race it's the old chicken and egg. Until women's sport is televised more there won't be the sponsor investment and it won't be televised more. I'd love proper coverage of the women's Giro.  I'd love to see the women racing the classics too. Not just a 5 minute synopsis before the blokes start. 

Optimistically it is getting better. Rabobank may have dumped the men's team but not the women's. UHC have run  a team at the Women's Tour of Britain with a proper team bus. What Women's cycling needs is proper promotion and coverage of a couple more big stage races to build upon. Not a two hour dash around Paris but at least a two week women's TDF.

I don't understand all this bloody feminists should seek funding from other women as if only women are interested in women's sport.  As someone said earlier it's not 'he' or 'she' it's we.  I wonder whether some of those writing have ever lived with a woman..? Your mum doesn't count - especially if you're still living with her.

The only comment I am going to make on this whole sorry mess is - read "The Breakaway" by Nicole Cooke. Yes it's one person's side of the story but it makes a challenging read and a much needed counterpoint to the religiously positive reporting of BC, it's achievements & behaviour. Sadly we & I include myself here, have been dazzled by the results of the last few years. Yes there have been some excellent results and racing from the female contingent. The question raised by Nicole's book is how many more fantastic results and female riders would "we"have if the same support had been offered to the ladies. Innumerable opportunities have been missed. And to be honest I suspect this also applies to a number of male prospects too who didn't fit.

I watched both the Olympic men's and women's road races in 2012.  The men's was on Saturday in decent weather; the women on Sunday in pouring rain - the women's race was by far the better spectacle and the demonstrations of sheer determination and effort were hugely impressive.  I particularly remember someone who had gone off into a ditch - covered in blood, snot and mud, absolutely burying herself to catch back up, and getting closer with every lap.  On Saturday, there was hardly a spare space on the course, but on Sunday there was masses.  Shame, that.

I don't see why it is Sky's or indeed Brailsford's job to develop / support women's cycling.

It would be great if they did, but I can see no reason why they are obligated to do so. 

My thoughts on Pete's tweets..

I think the first tweet was a fair enough point. Womens cycling at the time, had neither the coverage, or sporting challenge to warrant significant additional investment from a corporate already heavily investing in the sport. 

Best case, they would get no coverage...worst case they'd get loads of negative coverage being the big corporate backed team that totally dominates the womens sport. 

Has that situation changed since 2010, I'd arguably say yes. 

second tweet - unnecessary, and devalues his first.

I find it frustrating that people can't state fairly reasonable opinions through fear of backlash from the PC brigade.

Kennaugh was stating an opinion about the commercial state of womens cycling in 2010... there are far more serious twitter crimes being committed out there! 

There's a lot of stuff Brailsford hasn't done. He isn't Jesus.

It could be argued that what he has done is help to create the foundations of a cycling culture in which the sustained development of womens cycling is more likely to succeed.

But hey, that's far too positive an opinion to be posting on the internet.

Winning the TDF requires a huge level of focus, commitment and resources. I really cannot envisage Dave Brailsford or any other senior CEO going, "I know, let's dilute our efforts by running another completely separate team." It just wouldn't add anything to the objective.

A person who broadcasts their daily activities to the entire world via Twitter using that same medium to call another person "self-centred"? That, Alanis Morissette, is ironic.

I think Pissy Pete should apologise for being an idiot in general, not just in his deleted tweet.

Remember when men's cycling wasn't even on the TV in this country?

I've gone to watch womens races in this country and they are just as exciting but they still don't get the tv exposure.

Start with that to generate more interest and it might just motivate some big corporation to invest to the extent that Sky did in the men.

Well, I can see why Sky might not have wanted to invest in a female team. 

But it is a bit chicken and egg - if they built a decent team and publicised it, they would get publicity.   Are they going to get as much publicity as the men?  No.  Is that sufficient reason not to support women's cycling?  No.

Another viewpoint is that there is a deep strain of male chauvinism in British cycling.   Maybe Wiggins' "descending like a girl" comment wasn't just a throw-away line.