sophie

Olympics: Fullana abandons women's mountain bike race
AFP - August 23, 2008, 1:16 pm

Spanish medal favourite Margarita Fullana abandoned the women's mountain bike cross country race here Saturday.

Fullana, an Olympic bronze medallist from 2000 and three-time world champion, was the second big name rider to suffer from trying to follow the leader's pace and searing temperatures on the course here at Laoshan.

Canadian medal hopeful Marie-Helene Premont was the first big name to pull out.

The 30-year-old Premont, a silver medallist from Athens in 2004, began trailing behind the field early on the second of six laps of a tough 4.5km circuit.

Germany's Sabine Spitz set the early pace, having managed to pull away from the field late on the first lap. By the end of the second lap Spitz held a 49sec lead on Poland's Maja Wloszczowska.

Photos as following by MaJu/ DengFeng in Beijing

sophie

More photos please move to the link: http://www.qqride.com/bbs/thread-2648-1-1.html

sophie

More photos please move to the link: http://www.qqride.com/bbs/thread-2648-1-1.html

老郭

That's what we call tough women.  Watched the broadcasts on CCTV.COM, and they really put us boys to shame ... Even the last rider was riding faster than me, and I suppose that's why they are olympians, and I am not...ha ha

einzeln

sizhe just beat lotz men in china, and shes even not an olympian. you know her?

sophie

your mean is Sizhe a girl who comes from Jiangshu??

老郭

I know Sizhe, had a chance to race with her. Good fitness, and the only reason she is not an olympian is limited by her handling skills. Decending technical sections (part of a proper race course) is her weakness. If she can overcome that, she will fair much better than now.

einzeln

At the beginning of this year, her fitness is no longer domainating circle. But she always having fun in riding. She does not give up any chance to learn decending skills when she was in KM, and never give up the spirit in any game, that's what I respect her as a rider.

老郭

Oh yes, cannot agree with you more. She was here in Xi'an for a few days last year, and the team (K-Power of the Xi'an K-Point Specialized bike shop) loves her. She is a good sport, that is for sure.

sophie

I think there are some girls have good sport and also talent in the cycling field, but more improtant is they do need a good team and professional Coach for trainning them.

einzeln

Aah, a resounding idea. But show me the coach.

老郭

Right on cue. That is what we are still missing in this country. The sports is not a main focus of the population, and it has not enough government promotion. On the other hand, bike related companies are also not involving themselves into the field of professional/competitive cycling. They are focusing themselves more on the leisure and commuting market.

Jan

Cycling is an individual sport and it is important to find your own way of training, a coach is really not that important. The discipline to train and to live for the sport is really the most important and a coach can't replace this. You have to organize your life for biking and biking has to give you the fun, otherwise you can not reach the point.
I don't know any country where the government is supporting the bicycle sport, with others then to open the road for competition, but those are only the local governments.
You are correct there is no bicycle culture in this country and I doubt if it ever will be, like in several countries in Europe, but it all depends to the bikers and their family, biking is a family and friends and supporters happening. At the races in Europe many wives, girl friends, kids, parents, grand parents all join to watch the races and most of the races are a kind of party.
Bike related companies want to be involved in competition, take a look at Shimano, XDS, Merida and also Giant for the Hangzhou race, they all want to sponsor, also a company like Red Bull, makes lots of efforts to sponsor races.
Companies like Champion System, CMS, Sram, Trek and also Colossi spend still some money in sponsoring, and for sure all those companies spend more then 1 million per year for sponsoring and for sure ( I'm sorry if I forget other companies who also sponsor to mention ) that more will follow, but we need to be positive and and try to get companies involved, even the cantine at the corner.

老郭

I agree with you. To be more specific, what we have lack of is the following, it is exactly we as bikers, and for the love of the sports, should do our best to be Promoters: Individual parties to promote the sport by organising various sportier activities. Currently, 90% of the are focusing in geting to an atraction on the pavement, then eat and drink. We need more off-roading for the MTB crowd, and of course road training rides for the rodies.

einzeln

I think training for roadies are quite different from those who doing off-road. For XC it's a game racing against yourself, while road racing is a team work. But they all do need clubs  and sponsor support. Now there are handful events in china, comparing to five years ago it's been a huge boost of popularity.

A culture needs it's time to grow.