Championship races, two world titles up for grabs but one big difference: the crowd. It seems sport is the last bastion of sexism and cycling is no different. At the World Road Championships this week, the woman's time trial event attracted around a third of the number of supporters as the man's. For those campaigning for change, it's been an uphill struggle.
I did put the effort in. I, you know, wasn't sitting on the sofa with my feet up like all my rivals. After training, I was thinking about this problem, this concept, and putting effort into contacting the UCI, working with this women's commission. But I came up against a brick wall. And I realize that, you know, it will take my energy and drain me. So I might as well say, "Okay, stop." I have tried.
When the major man's road races and tours bring masses of fans and financial investments, woman cycling tends to be a lonelier affair. Less media exposure means less sponsorship. And it's not just in the world of road racing.
The relative lack of support from the public is hardly surprising given the lack of support from the top. Last month, the sports governing body had requested for more female events. The Olympics turned down, meaning come 2012 women will still only be able to win fewer than half the number of medals of their male counterparts. And the inequality in cycling looks set to continue.
And the problem, according to some, comes from within the sport. The International Cycling Union could still secure parity for the Olympics in 2012. But it would mean sacrificing some of the man's events to make way.
I remember, and I'll be perfectly honest, going to, you know, Women's World Road Championships seal 10, 15, 20 years ago, and it was a bit like watching pain trialing, being perfectly honest with you. Now if you go, like this weekend for instance, when the women's road race is on, it's a spectacular event. All of the other sports, not all of them, but I think 90 percent of them within the Olympic program are 50-50. And there is no reason why cycling should be any different. So, it's something that, as I said, we're still close at the moment. Then we can hope, hopefully within the discussions which we will have with the IOC in the coming weeks and months before they've made the final decision on the program on December, hopefully we can make some progress on that.
As Britain's Nicole Cooke attempts to defend her world title today, her current world and Olympic titles have already seen her achieve something no other rider has ever managed. The female role models are certainly there, even if for now they continue to be overload.
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