The professionalism of women’s cycling continues its ascension with an unprecedented number of women attending the latest course for Sport Directors (DS) at the UCI World Cycling Centre in Aigle, Switzerland.
Introduced in 2010, the UCI Sport Director Diploma is now compulsory for anyone exercising the profession with a UCI WorldTeam. However it is open to all people working in a Sport Director role across all divisions of cycling.
Not yet compulsory for UCI Women’s Teams, the Sport Director qualification has attracted few women until now. In a move to address the imbalance, the UCI offered seven scholarships for women wishing to become UCI certified Sport Directors. The response was overwhelming, with more than 50 applications received from over 20 nations. The seven women selected were joined by another two, who paid their own fees for the course which finished Tuesday with a final written exam.
UCI President Brian Cookson said the women’s scholarship programme for Sport Directors was part of the UCI’s push to continue increasing the professionalism of women’s cycling.
“Few Sport Directors are women and that is something the UCI wishes to address. In the last two years women’s cycling has developed at an incredible rate and continues to do so. In parallel we must develop and professionalise the role of women in the different cycling professions. The number of applications we received for the scholarships shows that women are ready and eager to take on those roles and I sincerely hope that we will soon see more women working not only for women’s teams but also for men’s teams.”
One of the course participants was Rachel Heal, a Sport Director for UCI Women’s Team UnitedHealthCare Professional Cycling Team and Assistant Sport Director for the men’s UCI Professional Continental Team of the same name.
“For sure I am in a male dominated environment,” she said. “At men’s races there is currently a maximum of one other female DS, and at the women’s races female DSs are still in the minority by a big percentage. But I am not made to feel that I am out of place or not accepted.”
Even so, she concedes that having more women in the profession could benefit the sport: “Women will generally have a different perspective and a different approach that comes from different experiences within the sport. I think both men’s and women’s cycling can benefit from this different perspective.”
Although she already has extensive practical experience out in the field, she appreciated the chance to add to her knowledge and exchange with other people exercising the same profession. “The course gave me a greater understanding of the structure of the UCI and it was also a good opportunity to network with colleagues working in both the men’s and women’s side of the sport.”
Recently retired Dutch professional rider Loes Gunnewijk is used to leading workshops and clinics and jumped at the opportunity to participate in the DS course.
“It’s a great opportunity to learn and to stay involved in the sport. It will be good to have this qualification at the highest level. You see things from a different perspective when you are in the car than when you are a rider.
“As a rider it’s pretty easy. You ride and people look after you. As a DS it’s 24 hours a day: you are responsible for the whole team, you have to be sharp during the race and you have to keep everything smooth and relaxed. It’s a different kind of stress.”
Coach and DS with Cycling Australia and the Victorian Institute of Sport, Donna Rae-Szalinski applied for the course in order to sharpen her skills.
“I have definitely been learning new things and validating some of what I already knew. It has also been great to network and share experiences with the others, because as a DS you work very much in isolation.” she said.
She believes an increase in the number of women DSs would be in line with the current positive trend in women’s cycling: “I have never felt such a momentum for women’s cycling before, not just among the riders but also the media, the public, even sponsors.”
On returning to Australia she will give a DS course for Cycling Australia.