Quote Originally Posted by witeowl View Post
Good point. I see the same in all sports, from basketball on down. Track and gymnastics might be the exceptions (and, of course, synchronized swimming).

If people don't watch, then the sponsors don't get their audience, so there's no money in it. So, really, if we're going to blame anyone for the discrimination, we have to blame the general viewership.

At least, that's how I see it, however unfair (and based in ignorance) it may be.
Agreed.

Another issue is the word itself. "Discrimination", at least in the US, is a highly charged word that typically elicits a strong emotional response and conjures images of lynchings, beatings, etc and then the flip side of affirmative action that doesn't feed pleasant feelings for most either.

Is it really "Discrimination" in this light or is it a lack of public interest that leads to a lack of funding, etc, as described much better above (or the other way around). Is this actually discrimination or is it basic economics? If the tables were turned and women's cycling were more popular with the majority of the population than idk, men's soccer, would they still be funded less than the men's soccer players because they are female? I doubt it, but THAT would be discrimination.

Are we, as women, really being told "you can't play with the boys because you are a girl" or is it really more "we aren't going to fund you to play with the boys because you as an individual are not fast enough"?

Are cyclists in general discriminated against because they aren't being paid as much, or given as much air time as College Football players in the US? Or is it again, economics, because the companies involved simply don't get a return on their investment in the cyclists while they roll in the dough with the football players? Should the later really be classified with the term discrimination or is it simply a free market economy (or something else)?

Hard questions that go far far deeper than crying "women cyclists are being discriminated against" and definitely muddy the water of that assertion. Why is it that we, as a society, idolize some athletes and throw other, equally as talented individuals, by the wayside. And on a whole 'nother aside, why do we idolize and lavish athletes and barely pay the individuals that save our sorry butts day in and day out a living wage? Should we be decrying that as discrimination? (yes, IMO, we should be decrying that...is discrimination really the best term?)

I guess by now you've gathered that my opinion is that it's not so much that the treatment of women athletes or athletes from underrepresented sports is unfair, unwarranted, and discriminatory, but rather that the treatment (pay scale) of certain classes of athletes is outlandish and absurd and should be more in line with the former, rather than the former being more in line with them. I also feel there is a whole lot more involved in what, at first glance, may look like something you could tag with the word discrimination (though I really feel that is a word to tread lightly around and use very carefully).

Getting off professional cyclists for a moment and into the struggles of the mere mortals...

It's not uncommon that I walk into a bike shop and there are NO bikes that fit me let alone high end bikes that fit me; it's also not uncommon that a brand will not even make a bike small enough. Should that be labeled as discrimination against small female riders or is it a prudent business move due to limited production funds and limited demand (hence a more limited supply). As much as it annoys me, and as much as I support those who change their definition of prudent business to cater to me, I don't find the ones that don't discriminatory. 100% of the bikes should not be marketed to 1% of the cyclists or the whole industry would crash (numbers pulled out of my rearend and are completely fake). Obviously I support those companies that supply a product for my niche; I hardly expect every company to do so.

Now, when I walk into a shop and get talked down to, or steered toward the entry level hybrid bike with pink flowers after describing my riding abilities as "intermediate", my desires as "XC race and endurance, full suspension", and my budget as "2-3k", IS discrimination and it IS insulting. (and yes, that's a true example)

I'm sorry this was a bit longwinded, and I don't have the answers to all the questions I just asked. It's more an exercise in starting to ask the harder questions that underlay this topic/issue. I'd encourage you to think about them and research them a little. In fact maybe a better way to approach the issue is from a topic along the lines of "Social, economic, and cultural influences on the popularity and pay of professional athletes: why some obtain star status while others remain unsupported and how/why this should change". Just a thought.