T
Tritonrider
Guest
From todays Cyclingnews
Speaking on Belgium's Radio 1, Verbruggen said "We must not have the ambition that cyclo-cross will
conquer the world. Cyclo-cross is doomed to stay popular at the regional level."
Verbruggen doesn't see cyclo-cross fitting into his "globalisation" model of cycling. He added that
he "wasn't cheering" about Sunday's Belgian clean sweep. "It is difficult to sell the sport to
sponsors and TV."
"I firmly believe that cyclo-cross is a sport that has a hard core of fans in eight Western European
countries. But therefore we must not want to make it a worldwide spectacle."
Verbruggen also said that he wasn't interested in expanding it to other European countries, such as
Scandinavia. "From Poland onwards, it's always very cold," he said. Also ruled out was the
possibility that it become an Olympic sport. "Cyclo-cross doesn't require snow and ice, therefore it
couldn't be part of the Winter Olympics. And for the Summer Games, cyclo-cross also can't be
considered, because ultimately it is a winter sport."
Did you ever get the feeling that he still thinks the world is flat, the sun is still shining on
the empire, and aeroplanes will never be practical. His track record speaks for itself. I am
surprised that cycling hasn't collapsed even more than it has under his dubious leadership. His
record on dealing with drugs, sponsors, bike manufacturers, and the press has been weak at best.
Why do I think that when he sees the future of racing he sees in black and white, everyone is
wearing wool, and using downtube shifters. Cross should be a fairly easy sell to at least Euro TV.
It happens when everyone is in winter mode looking for something to watch. Would not have to be
expensive to cover as it's at a single location not point to point. It has lots of fast action
over a short period of time. It's very spectator friendly and the crowds put on a good show too.
Oh, well just my $0.02 Bill C
Speaking on Belgium's Radio 1, Verbruggen said "We must not have the ambition that cyclo-cross will
conquer the world. Cyclo-cross is doomed to stay popular at the regional level."
Verbruggen doesn't see cyclo-cross fitting into his "globalisation" model of cycling. He added that
he "wasn't cheering" about Sunday's Belgian clean sweep. "It is difficult to sell the sport to
sponsors and TV."
"I firmly believe that cyclo-cross is a sport that has a hard core of fans in eight Western European
countries. But therefore we must not want to make it a worldwide spectacle."
Verbruggen also said that he wasn't interested in expanding it to other European countries, such as
Scandinavia. "From Poland onwards, it's always very cold," he said. Also ruled out was the
possibility that it become an Olympic sport. "Cyclo-cross doesn't require snow and ice, therefore it
couldn't be part of the Winter Olympics. And for the Summer Games, cyclo-cross also can't be
considered, because ultimately it is a winter sport."
Did you ever get the feeling that he still thinks the world is flat, the sun is still shining on
the empire, and aeroplanes will never be practical. His track record speaks for itself. I am
surprised that cycling hasn't collapsed even more than it has under his dubious leadership. His
record on dealing with drugs, sponsors, bike manufacturers, and the press has been weak at best.
Why do I think that when he sees the future of racing he sees in black and white, everyone is
wearing wool, and using downtube shifters. Cross should be a fairly easy sell to at least Euro TV.
It happens when everyone is in winter mode looking for something to watch. Would not have to be
expensive to cover as it's at a single location not point to point. It has lots of fast action
over a short period of time. It's very spectator friendly and the crowds put on a good show too.
Oh, well just my $0.02 Bill C