Jonathan Vaughters of EF Education First has responded to recent statements by Tour de France chef Christian Prudhomme regarding safety in cycling. During a recent assembly of the AIOCC held in Riva del Garda, Italy, Prudhomme addressed the issue, stating that, in addition to the organizers’ efforts to ensure safety during races, “measures should be introduced to reduce speed” because “riders are going too fast,” thus increasing the risk of serious accidents. These words, however, angered the American former pro, who often doesn’t mince words on X.
Vaughters calls out cycling’s ‘fat cats’
“To put it bluntly: It is absolutely infuriating to me how these fat cats, who have never raced so much as a child’s tricycle, making tens of millions in profit off the backs of others, squarely throw the blame for safety issues in cycling onto the riders,” he posted.
Valerie Dawson replied: “Thanks for everything you do for cycling! Rider safety is crucial, but what is pushing riders to take unacceptable risks? And why does it seem like the Tour and other big races used to have more fun and more character?”
#MakeRacingSlowAgain pic.twitter.com/gry8Zutmjj
— Jonathan Vaughters (@Vaughters) November 25, 2024
Vaughters, who rode for teams like US Postal Service and Crédit Agricole, replied, “They [pro cyclists] are highly competitive people. They are hard-wired to the bone to take life-threatening risks. Similar to F1 drivers. And like in F1, the answer is to create a safer environment around them. Because they will always push the envelope as far as it goes.”
On radios…again
This wasn’t the only hotly-discussed topic at the General Assembly. The UCI’s proposal to eliminate radios in races was also debated. UCI big boss David Lappartient said, “There is an issue of safety and another of making the races more spectacular.” He admitted their advantages, but he also believed there are more risks as a result of using them.
“Without radios, all cyclists receive the same communication at the same time. At the world championships, except for Muriel’s tragic fall, we saw that there were fewer crashes without radios.”
Allowing riders to listen to the race radio is a solution, he said, but the directors want the earpieces for tactical and strategic reasons, which he said has nothing to do with safety.
Of course, if a rider falls and needs medical help, a radio is a huge benefit to safety, as many have pointed out, along with…
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