Black/Asian pro cyclists

[Bigdaveskinnytyre]

One of the other cultural issues is simply that some cultures just don't do sport and exercise.

I regularly go to a local forest park for a run (more of a slog round the jungle), I see far more Chinese than Malay (despite the Malay being the dominant group in the country).

One of the Generals during the Malay Emergency said that the Malay are lovely people, just not fond of hard work, hence most of the businesses being run by the Chinese and the manual labour being done by Fillipinos and Indians or Bangladeshis.

[mattc]

I guess someone's got to mention the Kenyans training on the motorway for the commonwealth games story, it might as well be me ...

[Honest John]

I guess someone's got to mention the Kenyans training on the motorway for the commonwealth games story, it might as well be me ...

It's not just Kenyans. Mario Cipollini was once stopped by the cops being paced along a motorway at over 50mph. That, however, was a publicity stunt for Mario Cipollini.

[Steve Kish]

Perhaps it's a natural imbalance between upper and lower body strength that's the cause of the lack of black athletes on bikes.

I did see one the other day and although he looked very athletic, his physique seemed to be more suited to a boxer or sprinter; heavily built and well defined upper body and relatively thin legs. 

[clarion]

Other than Maurice Burton and Shanaze Reade, I can only think of one black professional in the UK.  It was in the 80s, and his name was Russell something...

[Robh]

Russell Williams

[clarion]

Thank you.  It's been bothering me for weeks, that.  I saw him ride in a crit in Sheffield once.  Led for several laps before finishing in the pack.  IIRC Steve Joughin won that one.

[David Martin]

Maurice Burton's son is a very promising youth/junior rider who has few notable scalps already. A very accomplished climber and one to watch for the future.

..d

[Kathy]

An article I found on Shakesville: http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/cocktail-party-physics/2011/07/20/is-it-cold-in-here/

It talks specifically about women as a minority, but I think the attitudes are transferable to any other minority in a white-heterosexual-male-dominated field. Pretty much, stop making a big deal about #Minority_Specific_Feature, and praise people for what values they have, regardless of colour/origin/gender. Sounds simple: problem is, it's recognising the unspoken innate prejudicial behaviour which is the challenge...

[Cudzoziemiec]

Major Taylor. Just thought I'd get him in.

Class and wider cultural issues, definitely. Hundreds of millions of Indians ride bikes to work and school, but it's only the (upper) middle classes who ride for sport or pleasure. Economics plays a part in this - bikes are cheap in India, but good bikes are more expensive than in Europe in relative, and sometimes even absolute, terms - but attitude is more important. Though apparently there's a bigger racing scene in Singapore.

[Somnolent]

I guess someone's got to mention the Kenyans training on the motorway for the commonwealth games story, it might as well be me ...

One of my spin class teachers is South African - it's a regular thing in SA he says.  A bunch of them will tuck in behind a big truck and go for miles at 50mph.

[clarion]

Maurice Burton's son is a very promising youth/junior rider who has few notable scalps already. A very accomplished climber and one to watch for the future.

..d

Germaine Burton has a younger brother.  Keep watching...

Maurice Burton owns De Ver Cycles in Streatham, btw.

[Cudzoziemiec]

But presumably they are unrelated to Beryl?

[clarion]

Only spiritually.

[Cudzoziemiec]

That's the best way.

[Bledlow]

There's a Japanese rider whose name sounds like "AlanSharearer", think he rode the Giro.

Yeah, but cycle racing's pretty big in Japan.

I think the issue here is more why ethnic minorities in Europe & N. America aren't into it. One can understand why it's rare in very poor countries: the kit costs much more than a football.

[giropaul]

There are good examples, as have been identified.

I don't see any evidence of "institutional racism" in UK cycling, Russ Williams was very popular with riders and was certainly "one of the boys".

There have also been a number of black amateurs around. In my racing experience I regularly rode with  a guy called Ben around Milton Keynes when I was racing, who was very much part of the scene, and a guy called Van something around Birmingham. The fact that they were around for several years seems encouraging.

[MSeries]

I've been casually watching the Tour this year and I'm noticing a distinct lack of black/Asian cyclists. I know there is the guy from Guadalupe but he's in a pretty small group of one. You'd think with the cultural diversity of Europe that there'd be a bigger mix of people from all backgrounds, sorry if it's been covered before but I'm not a regular spectator of either road or track cycling, so what's people's thoughts on this?

It's to do with culture not skin colour. There are not many professional ice hockey players in the USA who are Afro Carribean, yet other professional sports there have lots of participants from that goup.

There are not many Canadian professional cyclists in the Tour de France either.

There are far fewer black and Asian cyclists here in West Yorks. than there are white ones. Cycling isn't popular with that group of people so far fewer will make it to the top of the sport.

[fuzzy]

There's a Japanese rider whose name sounds like "AlanSharearer", think he rode the Giro.

In 2010 Yukiya Arishiro rode for Bouygues Telecom whilst Fumiyaki Bepu rode for Skil Shimano in the TdF.

Arishiro rode the Giro this year for Europcar.

Japan has a huge Kirin culture.