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Mark Cavendish and Olympic silver medal (copyright British Cycling.org,uk).jpgColombian federation reportedly set to challenge Cavendish medal (+ video)
The UCI has rejected a formal complaint from the Colombian cycling federation about Mark Cavendish being awarded the Olympic silver medal in the omnium last night. A further written appeal is now likely to follow due to a belief that the British rider should have been disqualified for causing a crash 50 laps into the concluding event, the points race.
Cavendish collided with the Korean Park Sang-hoon, who was taken away on a stretcher, and later admitted the incident was his fault.
@richardmoore73 didn't he...? pic.twitter.com/2t3vXQAmLX
— Claudia (@claudiascore) 15 August 2016
Eventual winner Elia Viviani of Italy was among the riders brought down, but Colombia’s Fernando Gaviria – world champion in the event – finished fourth, missing out on bronze to Denmark’s Lasse Norman Hansen.
According to a report this afternoon on El Tiempo, Colombia’s Fedeciclismo presented a formal complaint to the UCI this morning, but cycling’s global governing body rejected it, saying there were no grounds for reviewing what it described as “a racing incident.”
However, the newspaper added that Fedeciclismo now intends to appeal that decision in writing to a UCI tribunal, a process it says could take two months, with the hope that Cavendish will be disqualified and Gaviria elevated to the bronze medal position.
Speaking during BBC coverage of the event, Sir Chris Hoy concluded: “It was Mark's fault, but it was not intentional” - and Cavendish seemingly accepted that assessment. CNN reports that he subsequently told reporters: "It was my fault, I should have been looking more. I hope he's all right. I apologised to Elia after he went down."
Defending champion, Lasse Norman Hansen, would also stand to gain were Cavendish penalised, but speaking after the race he seemed to consider the incident part and parcel of the racing, venturing only the blunt assessment, “shit happens,” when asked for his view.
Alex has written for more cricket publications than the rest of the road.cc team combined. Despite the apparent evidence of this picture, he doesn't especially like cake.
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31 comments
I can understand the Columbians feeling aggrieved but that's racing, and as has already been said, shit happens. However, I don't understand why the general view seems to absolve Park of any responsibility for the incident. He wasn't trying to pass Cavendish on the inside but was moving up the track as Cav moved down. Both riders should take care when undertaking such manoeuvres and Cav has accepted responsibility for his actions, but surely Park was at least equally to blame as he was behind and would have had a clearer view of Cav. Indeed the suggestion that he should not have overlapped makes perfect sense in this context, moving up the track while overlapping another's wheel is always going to be a risky or perhaps even foolhardy action.
Unfortunately the issue here is that fedeciclismo wants a medal to parade when asking for funds. They are a bunch of comfortable execs without any link to the sport and looking for a bigger salary. In colombia corruption is the norm in these organisations.
Likely just lawyers, looking for a expenses-paid trip to Switzerland, and a chance to throw some business their pals way. It happens in many sporting federations. Maybe they get a medal out of it. Meanwhile they've got their athletes flying on the cheapest ticket and waiting for the hotel shuttle.
Looks deliberate....he looks inside twice and just cut the field off. He knew the field was on the inside. Didn't even sprint a little to take the position.
Apparently the appeal has been lodged and dismissed (as per update on the end of the article).
Have I missed something?
Thought Cav collided with Viviani, who subsequently brought O'Shea and Park down. At what point does Cav collide with Park?
Apparently you have missed everything. I suggest you go and watch it on BBC iPlayer.
I made exactly that same mistake (and didn't notice through all the replays last night). Watch it again
Ok I stand corrected. Cav hits Park first.
Note to oneself. No more beer after a ride on a hot day.
I can see why Columbia might moan... the neutralising of the race cost Gaviria his lap, although whether he would have achieved that lap without the crash is very aarguable indeed.
As for the crash, I think the judges got it right... they issued a warning and on we went. It wasn't malicious, it was a bit clumsey by both cavendish and Park.
Does Cavendish cause more crashes than other riders? I'd say no, not really. I'd also offer the counter argument that rather than Cavendish being overly aggressive, a lot of these situations are generated when larger riders try to force their size advantage on a little guy and the little guy doesn't yield.
Overlapping - Korean should have been aware too - there were a host of times this could have happened when the race was animated
As for protesting - maybe one should think about doing that before the results are declared final? I presume the IOC ensure results are final before medals are presented so unless you can show cheating forget it - a breach of race rules punished or not - even a miscount of the number of laps ridden whatever - does not cut it. Unless you can proce a winner has cheated...
Of the people who lost out one could argue that Cav lost the most as he was trying to ensure the race was hard enough that he could gain a lap at the end. The neutralised period ruined his race as much as anyones.
It's just a 'try-on'.
Anyone who has actually raced on the track knows that crashes happen. Hansen summed it up perfectly.
If you're on the receiving end of a move like this it's understandable you'd feel a little aggrieved, but it was just a racing incident. Arguably, Park shouldn't have been overlapping Cav's rear wheel.
Gaviria didn't look like medalling anyway with Viviani and Cav on form and Hansen on a charge. Complaining afterwards just looks a tad silly.
That's just what Viviani said - and there's not normally a huge amount of love lost between him and Cavendish
I don't know enought about track racing to be in a position to comment on what 'should and shouldn't happen' however I do know that if it'd been Cav who got wiped out and had missed out on a medal for someone elses mistake, I would hope our team would have something to say about it.
Gripping race though, I'd love to see more of that kind of race on the TV! I thought Cav rode great (apart from the incident), a very considered race, he's really showed a lot of tactical nouce and experience recently, I'm thinking of the national rr and this race in particular.
True but the Korean wasn't on for a medal , he was well down the clasification and Gaviria missed out on a medal because of he wasn't quite as good as the top three. Nothing to do with the crash.
From what I've read Gaviria did gain a lap on the bunch in connection to the crash, points which the judges took away when the race was neutralised. I didn't see this part of the race though so can't say whether he had already attacked at the front or if he actually did it as a response to rivals going down in a crash… anyone know what the situation was here?
Except he wasn't taken out by Cav. He was unaffected and then after coming 4th sees an opportunity to get upgraded.
+1 for shit happens. Unless they can prove intent then that's all it is.
It's just a pity that Cav and clean moves don't seem to go together as often as they should.
When someone comes down in a bunch sprint Cav is always involved. He makes moves that would make Schumacher blush.
Looking a the video, he looks over his shoulder then times it perfectly to cut up an opponent and simultaneously manages to take out his biggest rival in that race.
Some people dope. Others have motorised assistance. Cav just knocks everyone else off their bikes.
Looked to me like he saw Vivani overtaking on the inside, expected him to dive down the banking and set off to follow him, but misinterpreted.
It would be spectacularly dangerous (for Cav) to deliberately try and take out another rider's wheel. He could just as easily have been a crash victim himself. Aggressive riding, yes, but I very much doubt it intended to cause a crash.
Until you've ridden on the track and until you've ridden in a track sprint... Shut up!
I am not a particular fan of Mark Cavendish but this is tosh.
Looked to me like the kind of crash you get when you put someone whose track craft is a bit rusty (cause he's a primarily a roadie) in a technical event like the points race. Maybe that's why Viviani (primarily a roadie as well) did something similar a few laps later.
I don't think the rules require an intent to cause harm to justify a relegation, its enough that you make a sufficiently egregious mistake.
And this suggestion that the South Korean chap was somehow at fault because he had "overlapped" wheels - I think Cav was above the blue line, so its fair game to pass him on the inside and he's supposed to exercise some caution when he drops down. I think the rules are pretty clear: "riders may avail themselves of the full width of the track but must nevertheless leave sufficient space for their opponent to pass and shall refrain from any manoeuvres that could provoke a collision, a fall".
I wouldn't bother reopening if I was UCI but you can see why the Colombians might ask.
This rule comes from the section of the track racing rules that only apply to sprint races. I can't see anything similar in the section on points races.
You are correct.
Although I would argue that this rule (3.2.041) - which strikes me as merely an expression of common sense - is applied more generally to the points race and the madison (or any race where you have a mass of riders on the track at the same time), including by virtue of rule 3.1.122 (notwithstanding that on its face rule 3.1.122 applies only to the sprint for which points are awarded). Presumably it - or the principle upon which it is based - was used to determine that Cavendish was the correct rider to receive a yellow warning flag under rule 3.2.128 ("In the event of [collusion][sic] between riders, the (N) judge-referee may disqualify the riders concerned, possibly after a warning") and not the South Korean chap/Glen O'Shea/Viviani, all of whom were also "riders concerned".
So mayeb I should have said "the convention is pretty clear and is best summarised by the following rule (which technically applies only to the sprint element of a points race)". Sorry.
Yep - Cav was like a billiards player, lining up the cannon to take out the Korean and Viviani, while traveling at 60kph - Snooker-Loopy!
Utter nonsense, from start to finish.
Gaviria clearly wasn't on the kind of form he's shown in the past, didn't get a medal so they now want to protest their way to one. Lasse Norman Hansen summed it up perfectly by saying "shit happens".
FTFY. That's almost what he said word for word in an opinion piece for a Colombian newspaper. He added that there is no need to find anyone else to blame but himself (in spanish). A little too harsh on himself, to be honest. But if the Colombian Federation want to appeal they're clearly going to have to go ahead without him.
In any case Track Cycling seems to be taking a page out of NASCAR ("let the riders ride, crashes are marketable"). If Virginie Cueff didn't get penalized for one of the dirtiest moves I've seen, I doubt Cav will get anything other than a warning, if that.
Unfortunate, but not intentional. Viviani nearly took out another rider, who had to take to the flat off boards section to miss him. Sour grapes, too late and would set a very bad precedent to amend results when something should of been done at the time of the race.
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