Press Release

UCI Approves Equal Prize Money for Men and Women 9

bturman
12/21/2012 10:40am

Good news for the ladies out there, the UCI has approved equal prize money for men and women at the 2013 World Championships in Pietermaritzburg and beyond. There was no indication of whether or not this will apply to individual rounds of the World Cup. Press release below...

December 21, 2012 - The UCI Management Committee this week approved a proposal for equal prize money for men and women at all UCI World Championships.

Coming into effect from January 2013, this decision applies to all of cycling’s disciplines, with the exception of the road team time trial, whose prize money is funded by a contribution from the UCI WorldTour’s reserve and solidarity fund.

UCI President Pat McQuaid welcomed the decision, saying no distinction should be made between the achievements of men and women: “The Management Committee’s approval is a simple but very important step forward in our effort to guarantee a healthy and fair future for our sport.”

The first UCI World Championships in 2013 will be for cyclo-cross in Louisville (USA) on February 2 and 3.

-- UCI Communication Services


9 comments

View replies to: UCI Approves Equal Prize Money for Men and Women

c50 greenriver4.6.2013
Scott_Townes
12 years ago
Great for the women but this won't last... I'd be more stoked if they increased the purse sizes for men and women comparatively. The guys, along with the girls, are still so underpaid for such a committed, short and dangerous career.
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FCTRY
12 years ago
This sounds great until you get to a race where a woman who gets last of four racers and couldn't beat an eleven year old gets paid, and a pro man who beats 50 people to get 6th gets nothing. It happens.
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scriz
12 years ago
If it's only for world champs races, and perhaps even world cups that seems totally legit. I get your point, but it's a bit of a catch 22.... without an equal monetary opportunity there's little incentive for more women to pursue a career in cycling.
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Dave_Camp
12 years ago
I have to agree with FCTRY... there's little incentive for anyone to pursue a "carrer" in cycling other than for fun. I'm thinking prize money should be based more on entry numbers or something. Or just run everyone in the same class for true equality.
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FCTRY
12 years ago
You know I'm right when a female racer like Dave Camp agrees with me. The "needing prize money to pull women into the sport" argument is bogus, none of the dudes got into it for the money. There's nothing wrong with chasing prize money as a pro, but there's women who are cashing in their first year of racing because there's three women racing, while good pro men who have been racing and supporting the sport just for the love of it, year after year, go home empty handed. I know this rule is just for world champs and not just for downhill, and lets face it, UCI's payouts are a f-ing joke anyway, so who gives a shit. Payouts should be based upon turnout, then the women who can win will have lots of motivation to get more women out to the race, or they'll just cancel women's downhill altogether and no one will notice.
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Snfoilhat
12 years ago
You are all forgetting what "pro racing" is. The only reason there is a class above Expert is so that the competitors can act as sport and brand ambassadors. For that, they get paid enough money to try to keep them visible as ambassadors. Because it is still a competitive sport, and because the pro level is for people who would otherwise be the best of the experts, you have to pay people enough to make it worth their time to not only be better than the world's amateur racers, but also be a public figure. Because pros stitch together their annual salaries from a bunch of different sources, it's a dance trying to figure out how much to pay for winning an event. But the undercurrent in this little thread, that rewards for racing should be "fair," and that because women are slower than men that should affect how much they get paid is so childish. Part of what a woman pro racer brings to the table is being a woman, and unless you want to start racing, doing interviews, and shooting web series in convincing drag, you should leave it to them. This is a business, and it even seems to make life a little better for all of us who ride for the love of the sport and race for new tires.
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jbath
12 years ago
If you're looking for proof that even a group of morons wil occasionally stumble on a great idea, here it is.
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goinDH
12 years ago
This sport needs more women and publicity. Maybe someone should step up and double the women payout and bring some attention to the sport. The pro women's times would beat a high percentage of men and I see more and more cute girls riding every time I go to the parks. Not a bad thing.
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