What’s happened to sportsmanship?
Roar Guru By Kate Smart, 21 Jul 2012 Kate Smart is a Roar Guru
- Tagged:
- Cycling, Michael Rogers, Richie Porte, Sky Pro Cycling, Tour de France
Related coverage
Sportsmanship is one of the values we hold most sacred in any code of sporting endeavour and at the Tour de France this code and its values have been put to the test.
In a disappointing turn of events Richie Porte and Michael Rogers have faced booing from Australian cycling fans on the roads around France. This sort of behaviour has been rightfully deplored by many fellow Aussies involved in cycling, including commentators Mike Tomalaris and Rupert Guinness and on the Orica GreenEDGE website by Matthew White.
As cycling increases in popularity and more fans new to the sport begin to understand the tactics used by the teams and the peloton, we can hope that this sort of ‘misunderstanding’ of rider allegiances sorts itself out in the eyes of those Aussie fans who have misplaced their code of good sportsmanship.
That seems to be the argument put forward by some, however, ignorance is not bliss and therefore should not be allowed to excuse this behaviour.
Yes, Australians are keen to see Cadel Evans win the Tour again and his exciting riding feats over the past five or so years, especially, have introduced many Australians to a sport that was once so foreign to them.
Interestingly, though, other Aussie riders such as Adam Hansen riding for Lotto- Belisol or Jonathan Cantwell riding for Saxo Bank-Tinkoff Bank have not reported such poor behaviour. This may well be due to them not being as recognisable (to, dare I say it, ignorant Aussie fans) or it may be because their role in this edition is not to help another rider win the yellow jersey.
Either way, the ignorance argument is not acceptable to fans of any sport.
It makes perfect sense that Richie Porte and Michael Rogers are doing what they are paid to do and that is to see Bradley Wiggins finish the tour in yellow. It does not take an expert in cycling to figure this out.
On the other hand, what has been wonderful to see this week is the sportsmanship displayed by Bradley Wiggins when he waited for Cadel Evans who suffered multiple punctures after tacks were placed on the road during stage 14. I wonder what the Aussie fans who had been booing Richie Porte and Michael Rogers think of this act of sportsmanship?
One thing Australians pride themselves on is their commitment to sportsmanship and fairness in sport. This is evident in our football codes, with the highest individual accolade in Australian Rules football being the Brownlow Medal, awarded annually to the best and fairest.
We are also extremely lucky and proud to follow a code of football where fans are not segregated. One of the great joys of Aussie Rules is attending games with friends who follow the opposing team. It is disappointing to think that this attitude to sport has not translated to cycling, but then again the ANZAC Day game between Essendon and Collingwood is not about patriotism.
We are all Australians and this is the attitude that needs translate onto the Tour de France.
Passionate about your cycling? Then sign up to The Roar's brand new daily cycling email, delivering Roaring articles directly to you day-in, day-out. You'll love it!
Click here to join now!
Looking to join The Roar team? We're searching for an experienced Group Sales Manager to lead our team in Sydney. Yes, this does mean you get to work with the site all day long! If you're a digital media sales star, we want to hear from you. Apply now.
The Crowd Says (5) | Page 1 of Comments
Have Your Say
- Explore:
- Cycling, Michael Rogers, Richie Porte, Sky Pro Cycling, Tour de France
July 21st 2012 @ 10:57am
HardcorePrawn said | July 21st 2012 @ 10:57am | Report comment
Great article Kate,
My first thoughts when hearing that Richie and Michael had been subjected to abuse was to wonder how the same “fans” view Tim Cahill and Mark Schwarzer whenever Everton play Fulham in the Premier League. Is Cahill seen as a traitor to the Australian cause for scoring against Schwarzer? Or Schwarzer a Judas for preventing a Cahill goal from going into the net? Probably not, as they are both clearly recognised as players for their respective teams, the teams that pay their wages.
I like to think that the abuse of the Sky riders has just stemmed from ignorance, but it does seem odd that people have traveled to Europe, and then positioned themselves at the side of the road to watch the tour, without much of an understanding of how the teams work.
July 21st 2012 @ 6:25pm
Kate Smart said | July 21st 2012 @ 6:25pm | Report comment
Thanks for the positive feedback, HardcorePrawn (wish I had such a great name!). I think your point about Aussies playing football overseas is an excellent one and you’re quite right: why travel all that way to boo Aussie riders. Let’s hope we don’t see this sort of behaviour again.
July 23rd 2012 @ 10:23am
HardcorePrawn said | July 23rd 2012 @ 10:23am | Report comment
Thanks Kate, the name I picked in a hurry years ago when first posting a comment on the Guardian’s (UK newspaper) website. My preferred choice – Cheeses of Nazareth – had already been taken by another user so I just selected the first thing that sprung to mind!
Another angle on this whole booing debacle came to my attention this weekend, and I’m surprised that no-one has mentioned it before: Team Sky, despite being a British team, are bankrolled by one Rupert Murdoch (no longer an Australian citizen these days, and not really many people’s favourite person either, but the links to Australia are undeniable), which together with their 2 Australian riders, and Australian management too, means that they probably have a far more links to Australian audiences than the Swiss-based American team BMC with their sole Australian in Cadel!
As you say though, hopefully we’ve seen the last of this sort of behaviour, Richie Porte himself mentioned that it doesn’t go on during any other races, just at the higher profile TdF.
July 21st 2012 @ 1:09pm
semiotiq said | July 21st 2012 @ 1:09pm | Report comment
Definitely something to be learned here, but tragically those who most need to learn it are probably not reading your excellent article Kate!
July 21st 2012 @ 6:28pm
Kate Smart said | July 21st 2012 @ 6:28pm | Report comment
Thanks for your positive feedback semiotiq. You are quite though, those who need to behave more appropriately probably aren’t reading this. I just hope we don’t continue to see this behaviour.