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Olympic News: Phil Liggett says MTB and BMX shouldn't be in the Games, Cav recces Box Hill again

Commentator blasts rejig of track programme, teams take to Surrey roads ahead of tomorrow's big race...

Veteran cycling commentator Phil Liggett has risked the wrath of BMX and mountain biking fans by suggesting that those events should not be at the Olympics. Meawhile, last minute preparations are being made ahead of tomorrow's men's road race, with world champion Mark Cavendish and Tour de France champion Bradley WIggins among those out on training rides yesterday.

Speaking to the Australian newspaper the Herald Sun, Liggett criticised changes to the track programme introduced by the IOC and UCI that result in five events in the Velodrome for both men and women, with the individual pursuit one of those to be ditched: "It is absolutely disgraceful what they have done," he said. "They have devastated the track with the new events and taking out the iconic events of the Olympics," Liggett said.

"They have taken out the exciting and interesting events - the individual pursuit, the 1km time trial and the women's 500m time trial, and put in an omnium that no one will ever understand. There is only one rider from each country in the omnium and they are a jack of all trades and master of none."

"Nations and riders complained, but the UCI wanted equality. They got that but they also took out women's events. They introduced BMX. Great, but I am sure [Olympics founder] Pierre de Coubertin would have laughed his head off if he found out it was an Olympic discipline.

"It might be exciting but we are talking the Olympic Games. We have never had a good mountain biking event. Thousands will watch them but they are not Olympic gold medal events.

"They weren't meant to be in the Olympic Games."

Cavendish and Bradley Wiggins, together with the rest of Team GB, took to the Box Hill circuit yesterday for a training session there as the big race approaches. Other countries including Australia, Belgium and France were also out training on Surrey's roads yesterday.

There are more pictures accompanying this story on the Surrey County Council website, which also has links to useful information for those looking to attend this weekend's races.

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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39 comments

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mingmong | 11 years ago
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Take sailing and rowing out before the track events.

MTB should be in. BMX should be in. Anything on two wheels should be in!

Phil L is an institution... (or should be in one  19 )

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Stumps | 11 years ago
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Na, keep rowing and sailing in they are the only other events where we win medals.

The track athletes cant even be arsed to come to their home games opening ceremony, to busy lying in the sun in Portugal.

According to the althletics boss on Sky sports today "we cant have them standing for 4 hours so close to the competition, they are better off in Portugal where its warm".

Bin the bloody lot of them.

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Exustrek | 11 years ago
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Gotta agree that Liggett lost the plot some time ago and while it's true the track side of the things have been buggered up, his comments seem short sighted. BMX feeds riders through into track sprinting as they get older (Hoy, Staff etc.) and MTB produces some fine roadies. Wonder what Clancy and Trott thinks of his comments on the omnium..."jack of all trades master of none".. ouch!  13

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andyp | 11 years ago
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'Maybe i'm wrong here but to me bmx is a miny version of mtb ?'

in a way, I can see your point. But it's a *watchable* mini version of mtb. I love mountain biking, but it ain't a spectator sport...

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Shanghaied replied to Simon E | 11 years ago
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Simon E wrote:

If we're discussing which ones are 'Olympic quality' branches of the sport then shouldn't Cyclo-Cross get a mention? Or bicycle polo?

Don't think we'll see CX or bike polo in the Olympics any time soon, basically the olympic charter says that to be included in the games the sport has to be widely practised on all five continents (or have a governing body that can throw tons of money and political pressure at the IOC, a la keirin), and both CX and bike polo are pretty much only a Western Europe and N. America thing. Bike polo was very niche until only very recently (correct me if I'm wrong) and doesn't even have an international governing body that the IOC recognises.

Some unpopular sports are just grandfathered in, like gymnastics, weightlifting and wrestling, since they are considered classic and quintessential to the games, whereas others are genuinely puzzling - I mean does anyone actually know someone who does diving or synchronised swimming as hobby? If anything, rugby should be reintroduced as an olympic sport, judging by how well the world cup does every time.

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scrapper | 11 years ago
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I agree with Phils distaste that some amazingly exciting track events have been sacrificed, although i love the BMX and MTB events but never mind all that everyone, how about considering that somehow Golf has made its way onto the 2016 Olympic schedule !

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Simon E replied to Shanghaied | 11 years ago
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Shanghaied wrote:

Don't think we'll see CX or bike polo in the Olympics any time soon, basically the olympic charter says that to be included in the games the sport has to be widely practised on all five continents

Sorry, it was meant to be a tongue-in-cheek remark.

Quote:

does anyone actually know someone who does diving or synchronised swimming as hobby?

No, my friends aren't that interesting, most of them like cycling, oddly enough.

Triathlon could be considered a 'jack of all trades' combination of quite different endurance sports made worse by doing them all in one go! Respect to anyone who can train and race all 3.

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Colin Peyresourde | 11 years ago
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Phil is an old man who is clearly frustrated. I think he has a Point about the track. I love watching the indoor track cycling and can't see why they have reduced the Olympic program. I would think that the UCI would want to celebrate it's variations as much as possible.

I like Mountain Biking, but given our lack of mountains, and don't mind the BMX, but for me BMX just seems like such a fringe sport which is ultimately pretty transitory (given the incidences of accidents) that it just seems that it lacks something to make it more mainstream. I see the arguements both ways, but X games does seem a better fit for it.

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Ottadini | 11 years ago
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I really hope Phil sees just how popular MTB and BMX will be at the venues. The Olympics should constantly evolve, I personally think having DH MTB and 4X in the Summer games would logically be the flip side of alpine skiing in the Winter games. Maybe he would be happy if all competitors had to use 'big wheel' 29ers?

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