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Pendleton calls for Olympic equity

By Agence France Presse
Published: Oct. 29, 2008
Could she have won more? Pendleton doesn't know, but insists she should have had the chance.
Could she have won more? Pendleton doesn't know, but insists she should have had the chance.
Photo: Casey B. Gibson

Victoria Pendleton has told 2012 Olympic Games chiefs it will be an embarrassment if women are not allowed to compete in the same number of races as male cyclists.

Pendleton triumphed in the women's sprint in Beijing, one of eight golds won in an impressive total haul of 13 medals secured by the British track team at the Laoshan Velodrome.

However, in China there were only three women's events on the track compared to seven for men. And that has left Pendleton feeling her achievement was "insignificant" compared to the three golds won in Beijing by British team-mate Chris Hoy.

Pendleton insisted there was no justification for the present imbalance, saying during a kit launch at the Manchester Velodrome Wednesday: "It will be an embarrassment for London 2012 if there isn't an equal number of events for men and women at the Games. They have to be the same.

"It's an embarrassment in this day and age that there is a discrepancy between male and female events. We're not living in the dark ages here,” Pendleton said. "Obviously I'm really happy for Chris. He's an amazing athlete and when anyone asks me who my hero is I say Chris Hoy, even before he became triple Olympic champion.

"But in some respects I just wish I would have had the opportunity to do that, but I didn't even have the chance,” she added. "It is unfair, especially when Chris is hailed as the nation's hero, that I haven't even got the opportunity to compete in the events that he does and win more than one medal.

"I did what I had to do and it all seems rather insignificant compared to what he has achieved. I just want more medals to win."

Pendleton added global action was required to make the International Olympic Committee (IOC) add more women's races to the Games program.

"We are hoping to try and campaign to get it changed in 2012 but we don't really know how much we can do," she said. "It's really not down to us. We need an international response so me alone is pretty insignificant on the scale of things. All the other nations of the world have to put pressure on the IOC to make this happen."