Support road.cc

Like this site? Help us to make it better.

Brian Cookson says UCI "on the case" over Colombian women's team kit

But could it all be a trick of the light? The BBC is taking no chances

More background has emerged over the origin of the Colombian women's team kit that has been the centre of probably the biggest cycling-gear-related social media furore ever, and UCI president Brian Cookson announced yesterday that the organisation was "on the case."

A report from Spanish website ABC.es says that the IDRD-Bogota Humana-San Mateo-Solgar kit was designed by team rider Angie Rojas, according to Bogota Cycling League president Carlos Orlando Ferreira Pinzón.

Ferreira said that the team had been competing in this clothing without comment until this image from the team presentation at the women's Tour of Tuscany went whizzing round the world.

Yesterday evening, cycling's world governing body weighed in with this tweet from president Brian Cookson:

 

 

A few people responded that there were bigger problems in women's cycling than this kit. Marcos Marín said: "I think there are lots of more important issues in #womenscycling to fix than a brown kit. That race i.e."

Last year the Giro Toscana saw over half the field abandon on the final day because of safety issues, which Marín clearly thinks is rather more important than how a few skinsuits look on a presentation podium.

It also turns out that the problem could be, quite literally, a trick of the light. Cycling journalist Ben Atkins, who follows women's racing closely, tweeted:

 

 

Meanwhile, the fuss has even made the BBC news, though to spare Middle England's blushes, Aunty has carefully modified the image, as you can see here:

John has been writing about bikes and cycling for over 30 years since discovering that people were mug enough to pay him for it rather than expecting him to do an honest day's work.

He was heavily involved in the mountain bike boom of the late 1980s as a racer, team manager and race promoter, and that led to writing for Mountain Biking UK magazine shortly after its inception. He got the gig by phoning up the editor and telling him the magazine was rubbish and he could do better. Rather than telling him to get lost, MBUK editor Tym Manley called John’s bluff and the rest is history.

Since then he has worked on MTB Pro magazine and was editor of Maximum Mountain Bike and Australian Mountain Bike magazines, before switching to the web in 2000 to work for CyclingNews.com. Along with road.cc founder Tony Farrelly, John was on the launch team for BikeRadar.com and subsequently became editor in chief of Future Publishing’s group of cycling magazines and websites, including Cycling Plus, MBUK, What Mountain Bike and Procycling.

John has also written for Cyclist magazine, edited the BikeMagic website and was founding editor of TotalWomensCycling.com before handing over to someone far more representative of the site's main audience.

He joined road.cc in 2013. He lives in Cambridge where the lack of hills is more than made up for by the headwinds.

Add new comment

24 comments

Avatar
robgeje | 9 years ago
0 likes

and people think the photos of those ladies were indecent, have you been seen the rowers photos....wonder how much furore happened their photos were published

Avatar
ajmarshal1 | 9 years ago
0 likes

I'm not sure what's worse. People being outraged by the kit or people being outraged at people being outraged at the kit.

Meh. I'm off to ride my bike.

Avatar
Simmo72 | 9 years ago
0 likes

I wish the UCI put the same effort into growing Womans cycling. Really, I just don't think this is a big deal, i've seen far worse on the streets in this country.

Avatar
msw | 9 years ago
0 likes
Avatar
robert posts child | 9 years ago
0 likes

I dont think the outrage has anything to do with morality . Its about the traditional view of women as objects to be rated for their looks, not for what they do.
Nor is it solely down to what those individual women say about it, as it impacts all racing.
As for being outraged on someone elses behalf, you cant be, but you can be outraged on your own behalf. I find discrimination outrageous, whomever its aimed at.
Otherwise any wrong you can mention should be ignored by everyone not the direct target, so for example lets disband the police right now, as whatever happens,its nothing to do with anyone else.

Avatar
farrell replied to robert posts child | 9 years ago
0 likes
robert posts child wrote:

Nor is it solely down to what those individual women say about it, as it impacts all racing.

Please, do enlighten us all as to what impact this kit has had on all racing, given that this kit has been ridden in for pretty much a full season now.

Avatar
sfichele | 9 years ago
0 likes

Will Brian be personally checking the crotch of every female rider for acceptable and decent standards?

Avatar
Northernbike | 9 years ago
0 likes

the moral indignation surrounding this photo has distinct echos of that edwardian 'advice for lady cyclists' article that does the rounds every so often, the one about not having a 'bicycle face' and so on...

Avatar
ChairRDRF | 9 years ago
0 likes

Maybe it's just me, but I thought the issue was that there appeared to be dark pubic hair where, er, pubic hair is. Combined with what seemed to be ("trick of the light") flesh colour in the midriff area, for a split second the women appear to be wearing see through clothing from groin upwards to the white bit.

You can't see this in the photo above because of the black strip.

So there is an issue. There may well be other issues (safety of the race, status of women's cycling etc.) But still an issue.

Avatar
TimC340 | 9 years ago
0 likes

Seems to me people see what they want to see, and forget that photos can easily give a wrong impression - especially on a screen. This kit's been in use all year without anyone getting their knickers in a twist about it. And several men's teams' kit has been far, far worse - especially when wet!

Avatar
Beaufort | 9 years ago
0 likes

Do the women racing in the kit have a problem with it ? If not then what is the problem ? Outraged on behalf of someone else is a modern phenomenon that makes me feel sad for humanity.

Avatar
MaxP | 9 years ago
0 likes

Odd that there is no uproar when the bulge in the men's shorts are in view, yet there is drama over this !?

Good grief

Avatar
Ghostie | 9 years ago
0 likes

More stuff has been posted on here since I commented on the other article on this. Might be wrong but one pic that Angie posted up showed the skinsuit gold has a distinctive darker pattern very similar in design to the engraving on one exhibit at the Bogota Gold Museum called the San Agustin armband.

Bit of a variation on her previous design as posted up by Gkam84. I wonder whether she was influenced by the museum's exhibit(s) or maybe Bogota Humana's inclusion as a sponsor required some kind of identification with a major tourist attraction in the city. Just guessing.

Avatar
hairyairey | 9 years ago
0 likes

Yes they did just saw it on News 24 - they have to lets face it they look like they have their shorts down! Sorry but this kit is degrading to women. Even the selfie is downright dangerous. Light colours around personal areas should be a complete no-no.

Avatar
KiteKim replied to hairyairey | 9 years ago
0 likes
hairyairey wrote:

Light colours around personal areas should be a complete no-no.

That definitely should be a rule - no more white shorts, not a good look (even on world champions).

Avatar
Gordy748 replied to hairyairey | 9 years ago
0 likes
hairyairey wrote:

Yes they did just saw it on News 24 - they have to lets face it they look like they have their shorts down! Sorry but this kit is degrading to women. Even the selfie is downright dangerous. Light colours around personal areas should be a complete no-no.

Yes, absolutely! In fact one of the riders designed it. She must be into degrading herself!

Let's help them all by banning light colored clothing under the waistline. While we're at it, they should also wear long skirts that go down to their ankles to protect their modesty from their own wicked desires!

And ban all dangerous selfies!

We know best what they really want, right?

Avatar
Beatnik69 replied to hairyairey | 9 years ago
0 likes
hairyairey wrote:

Yes they did just saw it on News 24 - they have to lets face it they look like they have their shorts down! Sorry but this kit is degrading to women. Even the selfie is downright dangerous. Light colours around personal areas should be a complete no-no.

It was designed by a woman!

I think a lot of the indignation around the kit degrading woman is daft. IN the photo it makes them look like they are partially undressed and that's why peopleare laughing at it. If it was a team of men in a similar kit people would be lqaughing at them too and I doubt if we would hear anything about it being degrading to men.

Avatar
darrenleroy | 9 years ago
0 likes

Did the BBC really blank out the groins? Seriously? Fools.

Avatar
farrell | 9 years ago
0 likes

An absolute dick move from Cookson, perhaps he should step away from Twitter, or at least be better advised before he goes swinging in and publicly bullying a small cycling team.

Avatar
Gkam84 | 9 years ago
0 likes

Here is a close up selfie from Angie of the kit. Doesn't look bad in this photo. It is only that one from Italy that makes it look bad. They have been racing this kit for months, nearly 9, but the only issue has been when they come to Europe.

Cookson, get your finger out of your arse and sort out the real problems, teams stealing from their own riders and then not paying them

Avatar
truffy replied to Gkam84 | 9 years ago
0 likes
Gkam84 wrote:

Cookson, get your finger out of your arse and sort out the real problems, teams stealing from their own riders and then not paying them

QFT

Avatar
Gkam84 | 9 years ago
0 likes

This is their previous kit and I believe the gold from this kit was supposed to be the same on the skinsuit, both designed by Angie.

What would the UCI rather have, that or one with a bottle of pills on it.....

Avatar
andyp replied to Gkam84 | 9 years ago
0 likes
Gkam84 wrote:

This is their previous kit and I believe the gold from this kit was supposed to be the same on the skinsuit, both designed by Angie.

What would the UCI rather have, that or one with a bottle of pills on it.....

Im not sure why the UCI would have a problem with vitamins? Or are *all* pills evil?

Avatar
Gkam84 | 9 years ago
0 likes

It is only the skinsuit that has the GOLD patch

Latest Comments