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news
Elinor Barker Ciara Horne Team Pursuit‘Fluffy music’ and subtle sexism affect women’s cycling: Elinor Barker
The Welsh Olympic gold medal cyclist Elinor Barker has said that though there is “still a lot of sexism" within cycling, it is not "blatantly obvious”.
Speaking just days after Nicole Cooke, giving evidence to the Culture, Media and Sport select committee, slammed British Cycling, saying it was run "by men for men", Barker told BBC Radio Wales Sport that there were encouraging signs for women, but that sexism had not yet been eradicated.
"There's still a lot of sexism in cycling today. It's not always blatantly obvious like a pay gap or races not being put on," said the team pursuit gold medallist.
"Times have changed a little bit since Nicole's time.
"I can understand her frustrations but, as much as there is sexism in sport today, there's not been a better time to be a female cyclist. I certainly can't complain about the amount of support.
"There are so many more British female riders that can be full-time and don't need to get jobs and hopefully that's going to be on the rise.”
British Cycling said in a statement: "There is always more that can be done and we strive to make continual improvements to ensure that cycling is reaching out to women and girls of all ages and abilities."
Barker added: ”I think sometimes it's the subtle things that can be quite damaging - the choice of music while the women are racing can often be quite trivial and it downgrades the racing a little bit.
"When the men have got awesome rock theme tunes to their racing, it makes it more exciting and it draws the crowd in, whereas when the woman's is on, there's this sort of fluffy music and it doesn't make the crowd that excited.
"There are different levels to it. Equality needs to be across it all rather than just focusing on the pay gap. It needs to be all these little things to raise the profile of women's cycling.”
We reported this week that the independent review into British Cycling ordered in the wake of allegations of bullying and discrimination has reportedly returned a ‘damning’ verdict on the governing body, which is said to have appointed a firm specialising in crisis management to handle the fallout.
The findings of the probe, ordered by UK Sport last April after former technical director Shane Sutton’s resignation, will not be made public until next month.
However, British Cycling received a copy last week, with CEO Ian Drake, who had been due to leave the organisation in April, departing with immediate effect, the official reason given that he had completed handover of his duties.
It is believed that the contents of the report of the panel chaired by British Rowing president Anne-Marie Phelps, could be ‘hugely damaging’ to British Cycling.
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17 comments
I nearly missed Kate Archibald's first race at London 6Days because they scheduled one of the few women's races at exactly the same time as the doors opened and the queues meant we got in as she was finishing. I've just gone to check the results and the women's results were a couple of pages down. I think that's the sort of thing hat counts as sexism. Subtle? I'm not so sure that isn't blatant.
Lets give women longer stage races and equal billing and see what happens.
curious what "rock theme anthems" she would prefer - maybe "under my thumb" by the stones or "ballbreaker" by ac/dc?
"Like a Pill" by Pink?
"Only Happy When it Rains" by Garbage?
Seriously though, it's the same old problem. Some women are offended by the implication that a product can be tailored to the female market by 'shrink it and pink it'; others actively like pink.
I don't like pink but it has it's uses in stopping your stuff being stolen by men, and men realising they don't want to run a female cyclist over.
Can only echo Bill H's thoughts...
Me three. I said a couple of days ago to expect a flood of positive stories that the journalists should treat with a degree of scepticism...
What I like about the screaming, grunting, moaning women's tennis is that it is over much quicker than the men's game
There is open and obvious discrimination at work. Womens races are shorter than mens, that cant be fair if they expect to be treated identically.
I think you need to watch more tennis
A broadly positive story where a BC rider says how great it is that more female riders are being funded and don't need to get jobs.
This is the sort of story that I should like to see more of, except that I cannot stop myself from linking this to the news that BC has hired new spin-doctors.
Is it possible to find out when this interview with BBC Radio Wales was booked? I.e before or after Ian Drake received his copy of the UKAD report and resorted to a reputation management firm?
Does sexism imply hatred or discrimination?
The term 'subtle sexism' amuses me no end seen as 'sexism' implies hatred.
The English language at times seems not to have kept up with the evolution of Marxist thinking.
From the OED:
"noun. [mass noun] Prejudice, stereotyping, or discrimination, typically against women, on the basis of sex."
It's more a case of you not getting to grips with the English language.
Sexism isn't about hatred it's about judging women based on the fact we're not men and seeing us as something less wothy
Nah. Just in terms of linguistic pedantry you are wrong.
_Misogyny_ implies hatred, 'sexism' implies prejudice or double-standards. Unlike with race, where 'racism' seems to get used for both issues.
( I'm guessing that's why 'misogyny' often gets used inappropriately to describe what is actually 'sexism'. The word 'racism' probably sounds more powerful as an accusation than 'sexism' prec8isely because it lumps both issues together.)
Also, people who talk as if everything they politically disagree with is 'Marxism' are just damaging their own credibility.
The misappropriation of the English language is a Marxist perogative ... where 'racism' implies hatred, but 'sexism' strangely does not ... and where 'gay' means homosexual ... ad nauseum.
You lot make it up as you go along.
Who are 'you lot'?
The people who are fluent in English and who aren't weirdly obsessed with 'Marxists'?
You got it wrong, just acknowledge it and stop digging.