Keep the Individual Pursuit Petition

[Tar_Heel83]

I'm sure many of you are as dismayed as I am over the proposal of the UCI and IOC to replace the men's and women's individual pursuit with an omnium. I have started an online petition that I will submit to the IOC and UCI to let them know that cyclists and fans of the sport wish to retain the Individual Pursuit in the 2012 and future summer Olympic Games. Click on following link to access the petition. After entering your name on the petition, the online petition host will ask for a donation. This is purely optional and is not required. Please pass along this link to other cyclists and fans. Thanks!

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/keepindividualpursuit/index.html

 

[Tar_Heel83]

Over 500 signatures so far. The 2009 World Champion in the men's Individual Pursuit, Tayler Phinney, as well as his mother, Connie Carpenter, the 1984 Olympic gold medalist in the women's road race have already signed the petition. Keep on spreading the word! And thanks to all of of you that have signed.

 

[blackcat]

Over 500 signatures so far. The 2009 World Champion in the men's Individual Pursuit, Tyler Phinney, as well as his mother, Connie Carpenter, the 1984 Olympic gold medalist in the women's road race have already signed the petition. Keep on spreading the word! And thanks to all of of you that have signed.

Phinney should just sling a few bribes. The gold medal in 12 and 16, has to be worth a few million to him.

Cant see why he cant pay off a few people in the UCI.

 

[avanti]

Here are comments by UCI President Pat McQuaid on the topic.
http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/mcquaid-we-tried-to-get-more-olympic-medals
It sounds like the overall number of athletes in the games is limited by the Olympic Charter.

I think future Olympic promoters are going to think twice about building expensive velodromes for only ten 10 races.

 

[Hooptie]

This whole situation is mind boggling. The McQuaid interview is a bit ridiculous, shouldn't he be the guy that goes to bat for our sport? He should be trying to sell us the changes, not belittling the fans and athletes who have dedicated their lives to these disciplines.

“There a lot more issues than just the historical significance of a particular event or two events, or whatever it may be. There are a huge number of issues.”

Like what? Tell us the issues Pat. If number of athletes is an issue, then dump the team events (pursuit and sprint). Introducing the Omnium won't help solve the gender equality. And who really cares about the team sprint? The team sprint is a hobby for sprinters, not a specialty.

Next thing we know McQuaid is going to lobby for a masters category in the Olympics.

 

[Anonymous]

not to cause controversy, but the theory of bringing the womens and mens sports into line i agree with..

while on the road the mens races clearly dominate, the track is one area where women enjoy equal attention with men, in fact it could be argued that womens track cycling is one of the few sports where women really can compete on a fair footing with men as far as popularity and public perception go.. certain in britain the only track cyclist probably better known than Vicky pendleton is chris hoy.

The 7-3 split in bejing was unfair on many of the girls, so bringing it into line 5-5 i actually agree with.. so it comes down to which ones they get rid of..

that said if i had to keep five..

team pursuit
individual pursuit
team sprint
individual sprint

then im torn between the points race and the 500m/1k tt... cant make my mind up..

i agree with parity between guys and girls though

 

[badboyberty]

...

that said if i had to keep five..

team pursuit
individual pursuit
team sprint
individual sprint

then im torn between the points race and the 500m/1k tt... cant make my mind up..

i agree with parity between guys and girls though

my five to keep:
Team pursuit
Individual Pursuit
Individual Sprint
500m/1km TT
Madison

the omnium is a dumb idea... unless they make it a "track pentathalon" and use it to lump three or four events in together as one medal (maybe as ultimate sprinter medal; Kierin, Individual Sprint, 1km TT)

or better yet, they can take some of Swimmings redundant events and let cycling have it's fair shair. Suggestion to the Olympic organisers, when one competitor gets nine medals at a games there may be too many almost identical events.

 

[blackcat]

US need another hitter or two, with Farrar and Phinney those two guys with Hincapie could ride a WR in the teams pursuit as it is. They could still win gold in the teams if they put in the preparation. All have experience as pursuiters. Throw in Tom Zirbel, he would only have to pull for twice, over the first two kms.

Could not see any team beating those 4 in London.

 

[Anonymous]

US need another hitter or two, with Farrar and Phinney those two guys with Hincapie could ride a WR in the teams pursuit as it is. They could still win gold in the teams if they put in the preparation. All have experience as pursuiters. Throw in Tom Zirbel, he would only have to pull for twice, over the first two kms.

Could not see any team beating those 4 in London.

1.... what have you been smoking

and

2.... what have you been smoking

 

[Skip Madness]

I have to say that - although I'd happily swap the omnium and team sprint for the points race and individual pursuit - I'm in favour of the UCI's proposed changes. I wouldn't mind the outcry about the dropping of the individual pursuit so much if there had been even more anger at the inequality between the sexes at previous games, but there wasn't - just a quiet tutting. And although as I said above I probably wouldn't have gone with the omnium, it does give both genders the chance to do all the main events that are now off the schedule - scratch, points race, time trial and individual pursuit.

The proposed changes aren't perfect, but they are an infinite improvement on the sexist crap that went before.

 

[Tar_Heel83]

Status update as of 6pm GMT, 30 Nov. 2009. Over 3700 signatures from 52 countries. The breakdown in respondents as follows: U.S. 61%, U.K. 13%, New Zealand 8%, Australia 5%, Canada 4%, and all others countries combined 9%. Need your help to get to 5000 unique signatures by tomorrow. If you haven't signed, please do so right now. If you have already signed the petition, persuade a friend to sign. Thanks!!!

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/keepindividualpursuit/index.html

 

[Tar_Heel83]

Over 4,000 signatures as of 3pm GMT 3 December. Help push the total to 5,000 unique signatures by same time tomorrow!

Please note that the petition hosting site asks for a donation after you have signed. This is purely voluntary. If you wish to donate, the donation is used to pay the operating costs of the petition site.

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/keepindividualpursuit/index.html

Thanks for voicing your support of the Individual Pursuit.

 

[Tar_Heel83]

A hard copy of the petition has been shipped priority overnight to Jacques Rogge, President of the IOC as of 7 December 2009. After removing duplicates, the petition contained 4408 unique signers from over 55 countries. Thanks to everyone who signed!!!

 

[Tar_Heel83]

IOC rubberstamps UCI recommendations. I'm sorry to report that the Individual Pursuit will not be in the 2012 Olympics. Thanks to everyone who signed the petition. Perhaps there should be a new petition to recommend the firing of Patrick McQuaid and his management committee.

 

[avanti]

Now that the IOC has approved the event changes for the 2012 track events it at least saves the expense of flying to London and the effort in buying tickets. The pursuit and points races (and the KM TT) were my favorite track events.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/ioc-turns-track-events-upside-down

I predict the new London velodrome may be the last permmenent one built to support the games.

 

[BestButter]

And for throwing out the baby with the bathwater, a gold medal to the apparatchiks

Whilst I've long been suspicious of sports officials whose only brush with competition has been to wear blazers and diplomatically gladhand winners on a podium, I've always tried not to fret over the possibility that their decisions might be biased against entire nations. But I fear the woeful decision to remove the individual pursuit from the London 2012 track schedule is deliberately and determinedly anti-British.

Apart from the UK's current primacy on the track and the fact that even road-racing, in which our overall record is less impressive, is now in the ascendant thanks to Wiggins and Cav, these isles have a greater long-term claim to superiority at this event than most. We've excelled at the pursuit even when languishing elsewhere; Norman Sheil, Hugh Porter, Tony Doyle, Colin Sturgess, Chris Boardman and Graeme Obree all won Olympic and/or world pursuit championships when British roadmen, with a few exceptions, were struggling.

Apart from its place on the high table of iconic sporting events - think no further than Boardman's Lotus-borne triumph at Barcelona '92 - the pursuit can be phenomenally exciting, too. So why throw out the baby with the bathwater? One can only conclude there are darker motives afoot than merely clearing the schedules for other events. To deprive Bradley Wiggins and others of the opportunity to shine on home turf - not to mention those foreign riders fired by the competition and keen to knock the UK from its gold trackside pedestal, which is how it's all supposed to work - is a decision typical of the blinkered officials who've never turned a pedal in anger and the blazered political apparatchiks who infect every sport. It stinks to high heaven.

 

[Big_Blue_Dave]

Well if you notice the headline of another story on the front page "Pat McQuaid nominated for IOC membership." I think that should tell you why he has just bent over and taken a large one up the rear in respect to the Olympic track cycling program.

 

[avanti]

Whilst I've long been suspicious of sports officials whose only brush with competition has been to wear blazers and diplomatically gladhand winners on a podium, I've always tried not to fret over the possibility that their decisions might be biased against entire nations. But I fear the woeful decision to remove the individual pursuit from the London 2012 track schedule is deliberately and determinedly anti-British.

Apart from the UK's current primacy on the track and the fact that even road-racing, in which our overall record is less impressive, is now in the ascendant thanks to Wiggins and Cav, these isles have a greater long-term claim to superiority at this event than most. We've excelled at the pursuit even when languishing elsewhere; Norman Sheil, Hugh Porter, Tony Doyle, Colin Sturgess, Chris Boardman and Graeme Obree all won Olympic and/or world pursuit championships when British roadmen, with a few exceptions, were struggling.

Apart from its place on the high table of iconic sporting events - think no further than Boardman's Lotus-borne triumph at Barcelona '92 - the pursuit can be phenomenally exciting, too. So why throw out the baby with the bathwater? One can only conclude there are darker motives afoot than merely clearing the schedules for other events. To deprive Bradley Wiggins and others of the opportunity to shine on home turf - not to mention those foreign riders fired by the competition and keen to knock the UK from its gold trackside pedestal, which is how it's all supposed to work - is a decision typical of the blinkered officials who've never turned a pedal in anger and the blazered political apparatchiks who infect every sport. It stinks to high heaven.

I agree with most of your posting - however this decision is not just anti-British but anti lots of other countries with a strong pursuiting tradition.
http://www.bikecult.com/bikecultbook/sports_trackOlympics.html

How is it that the countries hosting the games have less and less input with each Olympics. I think it should be up to the host country to decide on how they run the games - and whether to invite 10,000 or 100,000 athletes.

I noted that when Chicago was in the running for 2016 the UCI was already criticizing the road race course.

 

[BestButter]

I agree with most of your posting - however this decision is not just anti-British but anti lots of other countries with a strong pursuiting tradition.
http://www.bikecult.com/bikecultbook/sports_trackOlympics.html

Agreed, hence my acknowledgement (final para) of the natural urge of trackies from other countries to knock the UK off its perch.

One thing I didn't know before posting is of Pat McQuaid's involvement. I remember him as a competitor when I was riding (too long ago) which almost gives the lie to my point about non-combatant 'blazers'. Heaven only knows what he's thinking, going along with this abomination (assuming that he does - which isn't, of course, necessarily the case. What say you, PMcQ?).

 

[Buffalo Soldier]

No more madison too
That's the best track event!! The essence of six-day racing!

And no more points race too.

At least there's still the omnium...

 

[Jarrah]

IOC idiocy

Seems the IOC wants to make track cycling as exciting as those mind-dulling field events where overweight hulks hurl bits of metal into the air. Bad jokes aside, the individual pursuit is classic rider against rider. The epitome of Olympic contest so what's the true story? The IOC has a long history of anti-cycling, driven very hard in recent years by former Canadian olympic swimmer, **** Pound. Is this just a continuation of his and the IOC's attempts to undermine our sport?

 

[Skip Madness]

Whilst I've long been suspicious of sports officials whose only brush with competition has been to wear blazers and diplomatically gladhand winners on a podium, I've always tried not to fret over the possibility that their decisions might be biased against entire nations. But I fear the woeful decision to remove the individual pursuit from the London 2012 track schedule is deliberately and determinedly anti-British.

[...]

To deprive Bradley Wiggins and others of the opportunity to shine on home turf - not to mention those foreign riders fired by the competition and keen to knock the UK from its gold trackside pedestal, which is how it's all supposed to work - is a decision typical of the blinkered officials who've never turned a pedal in anger and the blazered political apparatchiks who infect every sport. It stinks to high heaven.

It can hardly be described as anti-British. Of all of the events from Beijing to have disappeared come London, only the men's and women's individual pursuits were won by Brits in the shape of Rebecca Romero and Bradley Wiggins. Chris Newton got bronze in the points race, and Lizzie Armitstead would likely do well in it too were it to be in London. Britain has won two World Championship golds in the Madison over the last decade, but has generally been nowhere near as consistent as Spain or Argentina.

Now let's look at the new events. There is now a women's team pursuit, an event in World Championships which has only ever been won by Britain in its short history and in which a British team without Rebecca Romero recently set the world record. There is a women's team sprint, which Britain has won on two of its three World Championships outings, and which an under-prepared British duo still got silver in this year. There is now a women's keirin, in which Victoria Pendleton is a former World Champion (though admittedly she would not be the favourite at the moment).

And there's the omnium.

If you want to argue against the changes then fine, I can see why not everyone likes them. I don't think they are perfect, although I still support them as they are no end of an improvement over what went before. But to make out that it's anti-British simply isn't supportable.

I don't know why the IOC is insisting on only x number of medals for cycling and not other sports, but it is. In the face of that, and the IOC's (quite right) insistence on gender parity, I'm going to suggest that the UCI is actually - for once - doing something approaching the right thing.

 

[john_smith]

Canada

It looks like Canada could really benefit from these changes. They had silver medals in men's AND women's omnium last year at Worlds.

 

[pmsc111]

The Olympics were once the pinnacle of the sport. Now it's fast becoming irrelevant much like it is for Tennis and Golf.

Can't believe what they have done to a talent like Taylor Phinney. Similar to asking Usain Bolt to take up the Decathlon or only race the relay.

 

[BestButter]

If you want to argue against the changes then fine, I can see why not everyone likes them. I don't think they are perfect, although I still support them as they are no end of an improvement over what went before. But to make out that it's anti-British simply isn't supportable.

I don't know why the IOC is insisting on only x number of medals for cycling and not other sports, but it is. In the face of that, and the IOC's (quite right) insistence on gender parity, I'm going to suggest that the UCI is actually - for once - doing something approaching the right thing.

Try reading my post in full, along with my response to avanti. If gender parity is the goal, this decision is perverse given that womens' interest in the pursuit is as strong as the mens'. And I cannot see how you can support your own view that what went before was somehow wanting; whatever's wrong is hardly going to be resolved by dumping one of the most famous and iconic cycling events of all; bike-riding's equivalent of the 1500m.

Whilst my original opening para suggests otherwise, my viewpoint is not entirely parochial. I bow to no-one in my admiration for Franco Moser, Roger Riviere, Taylor Phinney et al. But forgive my mild knee-jerk jingoism: as an ex-roadie who always felt we weren't internationally quite up to par away from the track, I'd like to hang on to what I know we can achieve on it.