SPORT IS POLITICAL

Quinn Simmons has not learned his lesson. Last year the Trek-Segafred o rider was suspended for what his team called “conduct unbefitting a Trek athlete”. Last September, the American posted a tweet that included the word “Bye” and an emoji of a black hand waving, in a reply to a journalist’s tweet saying that supporters of Donald Trump could unfollow her. This incident was alleged to be racist, but half a year on when Simmons was asked whether he understood why he was suspended, he said: “If I’m honest, no, not really.” This is despite diversity training during the off-season. He also told Cyclingnews.com: “I don’t feel like I deserved the suspension… This is really something new that I don’t fully understand, and a lot of people don’t understand.”

There was quite a contrast between Simmons’ attitude and the words of Tao Geoghegan Hart. In an interview with the Guardian, the Giro winner argued that “everything is political”. Geoghegan Hart is right. Everything is political. The way that the sport of cycling intersects with gender, race, and international relations has a real impact. Cyclists should use their platforms to fight for change, and question the ways they are used as tools, not just ride on in ignorance. The pay disparity between men’s and women’s cycling was given widespread exposure after the prize money for the different editions of Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Strade Bianche was revealed. It took crowdsourcing to gain parity at Strade Bianche. Yet there are more problems in women’s cycling than this, whether it’s the ongoing battle to get the biggest races on television, or abuse within the sport. This is all political. The bicycle is an emancipatory machine, and yet within an often traditional sport, progress seems far off sometimes.

Cycling has just as much responsibility for changing society for the better and tackling racism as any other part of society. Sport is political.